In 2025, nearly 11.7 percent of the world population in extreme poverty, with the poverty threshold at 2.15 U.S. dollars a day, lived in Nigeria. Moreover, the Democratic Republic of the Congo accounted for around 11.7 percent of the global population in extreme poverty. Other African nations with a large poor population were Tanzania, Mozambique, and Madagascar. Poverty levels remain high despite the forecast decline Poverty is a widespread issue across Africa. Around 429 million people on the continent were living below the extreme poverty line of 2.15 U.S. dollars a day in 2024. Since the continent had approximately 1.4 billion inhabitants, roughly a third of Africa’s population was in extreme poverty that year. Mozambique, Malawi, Central African Republic, and Niger had Africa’s highest extreme poverty rates based on the 2.15 U.S. dollars per day extreme poverty indicator (updated from 1.90 U.S. dollars in September 2022). Although the levels of poverty on the continent are forecast to decrease in the coming years, Africa will remain the poorest region compared to the rest of the world. Prevalence of poverty and malnutrition across Africa Multiple factors are linked to increased poverty. Regions with critical situations of employment, education, health, nutrition, war, and conflict usually have larger poor populations. Consequently, poverty tends to be more prevalent in least-developed and developing countries worldwide. For similar reasons, rural households also face higher poverty levels. In 2024, the extreme poverty rate in Africa stood at around 45 percent among the rural population, compared to seven percent in urban areas. Together with poverty, malnutrition is also widespread in Africa. Limited access to food leads to low health conditions, increasing the poverty risk. At the same time, poverty can determine inadequate nutrition. Almost 38.3 percent of the global undernourished population lived in Africa in 2022.

In 2025, around ***** million people in Africa were living in extreme poverty, with the poverty threshold at **** U.S. dollars a day. The number of poor people on the continent dropped slightly compared to the previous year. Poverty in Africa is expected to decline slightly in the coming years, even in the face of a growing population. The number of inhabitants living below the extreme poverty line would decrease to around *** million by 2030.

Historical dataset showing Africa poverty rate by year from N/A to N/A.

Extreme poverty in Africa is prevalent in rural areas. In 2024, ** percent of the continent's rural population was living with less than **** U.S. dollars a day. On the other hand, extreme poverty concerns only ***** percent of the urban population.

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic impacted East Africa's poverty level. Extreme poverty rate in the region increased from ** percent in 2019 to ** percent in 2021. South Sudan and Brurundi had the highest share of population living on less than **** U.S. dollars per day, ** percent and ** percent, respectively.

Historical dataset showing South Africa poverty rate by year from 1993 to 2014.

South Africa ZA: Poverty Headcount Ratio at National Poverty Lines: % of Population data was reported at 55.500 % in 2014. This records an increase from the previous number of 53.200 % for 2010. South Africa ZA: Poverty Headcount Ratio at National Poverty Lines: % of Population data is updated yearly, averaging 58.800 % from Dec 2005 (Median) to 2014, with 4 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 66.600 % in 2005 and a record low of 53.200 % in 2010. South Africa ZA: Poverty Headcount Ratio at National Poverty Lines: % of Population data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s South Africa – Table ZA.World Bank.WDI: Poverty. National poverty headcount ratio is the percentage of the population living below the national poverty lines. National estimates are based on population-weighted subgroup estimates from household surveys.; ; World Bank, Global Poverty Working Group. Data are compiled from official government sources or are computed by World Bank staff using national (i.e. country–specific) poverty lines.; ; This series only includes estimates that to the best of our knowledge are reasonably comparable over time for a country. Due to differences in estimation methodologies and poverty lines, estimates should not be compared across countries.

Considering the latest available data, Mozambique had the highest share of the population living in extreme poverty among the selected African countries, corresponding to around **** percent in 2019. Malawi, Central African Republic, Niger, and Tanzania followed with approximately ****, ****, ****, and **** percent between 2018 and 2021, respectively. The extreme poverty line was set at **** U.S. dollars a day, taking into consideration Purchasing Power Parities (PPP).

South Africa: Poverty, percent of population: The latest value from 2014 is 55.5 percent, an increase from 53.2 percent in 2010. In comparison, the world average is 25.08 percent, based on data from 48 countries. Historically, the average for South Africa from 2005 to 2014 is 59.35 percent. The minimum value, 53.2 percent, was reached in 2010 while the maximum of 66.6 percent was recorded in 2005.

Central African Republic Poverty Headcount Ratio at Societal Poverty Lines: % of Population data was reported at 65.700 % in 2021. This records an increase from the previous number of 61.900 % for 2008. Central African Republic Poverty Headcount Ratio at Societal Poverty Lines: % of Population data is updated yearly, averaging 65.700 % from Dec 1992 (Median) to 2021, with 3 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 82.200 % in 1992 and a record low of 61.900 % in 2008. Central African Republic Poverty Headcount Ratio at Societal Poverty Lines: % of Population data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Central African Republic – Table CF.World Bank.WDI: Social: Poverty and Inequality. The poverty headcount ratio at societal poverty line is the percentage of a population living in poverty according to the World Bank's Societal Poverty Line. The Societal Poverty Line is expressed in purchasing power adjusted 2017 U.S. dollars and defined as max($2.15, $1.15 + 0.5*Median). This means that when the national median is sufficiently low, the Societal Poverty line is equivalent to the extreme poverty line, $2.15. For countries with a sufficiently high national median, the Societal Poverty Line grows as countries’ median income grows.;World Bank, Poverty and Inequality Platform. Data are based on primary household survey data obtained from government statistical agencies and World Bank country departments. Data for high-income economies are mostly from the Luxembourg Income Study database. For more information and methodology, please see http://pip.worldbank.org.;;The World Bank’s internationally comparable poverty monitoring database now draws on income or detailed consumption data from more than 2000 household surveys across 169 countries. See the Poverty and Inequality Platform (PIP) for details (www.pip.worldbank.org).

37.3 (%) in 2014. Poverty headcount ratio at $3.20 a day is the percentage of the population living on less than $3.20 a day at 2011 international prices. As a result of revisions in PPP exchange rates, poverty rates for individual countries cannot be compared with poverty rates reported in earlier editions.

Ghana’s Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI), which complements the monetary poverty by providing an assessment of deprivation of basic survival needs.

The average for 2020 based on 2 countries was 47.65 percent. The highest value was in the Gambia: 53.4 percent and the lowest value was in Mali: 41.9 percent. The indicator is available from 2000 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

Sudan has the highest poverty rate in North Africa. According to projections, around ** percent of Sudan's population lived below the national poverty line in 2022. Poverty levels were also high in Mauritania and Egypt, with the poverty rate reaching almost ** percent. By 2023, poverty in the region was projected to decline slightly.

Historical dataset showing Central African Republic poverty rate by year from 1992 to 2021.

Poverty rate of Central African Republic plummeted by 21.64% from 84.1 % in 1992 to 65.9 % in 2008. Since the 21.64% drop in 2008, poverty rate remained constant by 0.00% in 2008. Population below $1.90 a day is the percentage of the population living on less than $1.90 a day at 2011 international prices.

license: apache-2.0 tags: - africa - sustainable-development-goals - world-health-organization - development

  Population below international poverty line (%)





  Dataset Description

This dataset provides country-level data for the indicator "1.1.1 Population below international poverty line (%)" across African nations, sourced from the World Health Organization's (WHO) data portal on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The data is presented in a wide format… See the full description on the dataset page: https://huggingface.co/datasets/electricsheepafrica/population-below-international-poverty-line-for-african-countries.

South Africa ZA: Poverty Headcount Ratio at $3.20 a Day: 2011 PPP: % of Population data was reported at 37.600 % in 2014. This records an increase from the previous number of 35.800 % for 2010. South Africa ZA: Poverty Headcount Ratio at $3.20 a Day: 2011 PPP: % of Population data is updated yearly, averaging 47.800 % from Dec 1993 (Median) to 2014, with 7 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 53.900 % in 1996 and a record low of 35.800 % in 2010. South Africa ZA: Poverty Headcount Ratio at $3.20 a Day: 2011 PPP: % of Population data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s South Africa – Table ZA.World Bank.WDI: Poverty. Poverty headcount ratio at $3.20 a day is the percentage of the population living on less than $3.20 a day at 2011 international prices. As a result of revisions in PPP exchange rates, poverty rates for individual countries cannot be compared with poverty rates reported in earlier editions.; ; World Bank, Development Research Group. Data are based on primary household survey data obtained from government statistical agencies and World Bank country departments. Data for high-income economies are from the Luxembourg Income Study database. For more information and methodology, please see PovcalNet (http://iresearch.worldbank.org/PovcalNet/index.htm).; ; The World Bank’s internationally comparable poverty monitoring database now draws on income or detailed consumption data from more than one thousand six hundred household surveys across 164 countries in six regions and 25 other high income countries (industrialized economies). While income distribution data are published for all countries with data available, poverty data are published for low- and middle-income countries and countries eligible to receive loans from the World Bank (such as Chile) and recently graduated countries (such as Estonia) only. The aggregated numbers for low- and middle-income countries correspond to the totals of 6 regions in PovcalNet, which include low- and middle-income countries and countries eligible to receive loans from the World Bank (such as Chile) and recently graduated countries (such as Estonia). See PovcalNet (http://iresearch.worldbank.org/PovcalNet/WhatIsNew.aspx) for definitions of geographical regions and industrialized countries.

In 2023, the international poverty (based on 2017 purchasing power parities (PPPs)) and the lower-income poverty rate (3.65 U.S. dollars in 2017 PPP), was highest for Mozambique within the Southern Africa region, with 74.7 percent and 88.7 percent, respectively. However, the upper middle-income poverty rate was highest for Zambia, at 93 percent.

license: apache-2.0 tags: - africa - sustainable-development-goals - world-health-organization - development

  Employed population below international poverty line (%) - Male





  Dataset Description

This dataset provides country-level data for the indicator "1.1.1 Employed population below international poverty line (%) - Male" across African nations, sourced from the World Health Organization's (WHO) data portal on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The data is… See the full description on the dataset page: https://huggingface.co/datasets/electricsheepafrica/employed-population-below-international-poverty-line-male-for-african-countries.