As of 2026, 12 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 439 million people on the continent were living below the extreme poverty line of 2.15 U.S. dollars a day in 2025. Since the continent had approximately 1.6 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 2026, the extreme poverty rate in Africa stood at around 44 percent among the rural population, compared to seight 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.

As of 2026, 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. As of, ** 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 average for 2020 based on 6 countries was 48.37 percent. The highest value was in Democratic Republic of the Congo: 56.2 percent and the lowest value was in Mali: 41.9 percent. The indicator is available from 1985 to 2024. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

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.

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.

HDX HAPI - Food Security, Nutrition & Poverty: Poverty Rate

Publisher: HDX Humanitarian API Data · Source: HDX · License: other-pd-nr · Updated: 2026-03-05

  Abstract

This dataset contains data obtained from the HDX Humanitarian API (HDX HAPI), which provides standardized humanitarian indicators designed for seamless interoperability from multiple sources. The data facilitates automated workflows and visualizations to support humanitarian decision making. For more… See the full description on the dataset page: https://huggingface.co/datasets/electricsheepafrica/africa-hdx-hapi-poverty-rate.

In 2022, the international poverty (based on 2017 purchasing power parity (PPP)) and the lower-income poverty rate (3.65 U.S. dollars in 2017 PPP), was highest in Burundi within the East African region, with 83 percent and 96.6 percent, respectively. However, the upper middle-income poverty rate was highest in Somalia, at 98.8 percent.

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.

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 24.11 percent, based on data from 54 countries. Historically, the average for South Africa from 1995 to 2014 is 51.07 percent. The minimum value, 31 percent, was reached in 1995 while the maximum of 66.6 percent was recorded in 2005.

In 2020, the Congo (Congo Kinshasa) ranked first by number of people living on less than 2.15 U.S. dollars a day among the 51 countries presented in the ranking. Congo (Congo Kinshasa)'s number of people amounted to ***** percent, while Mozambique (2022) and South Sudan (2016), the second and third countries, had records amounting to ***** percent and ***** percent, respectively.

Poverty rate, gap, density and the percentage of poor housing at Location level in Kenya in 1999.

Publisher: World Resources Institute (inactive) · Source: HDX · License: other-pd-nr · Updated: 2025-08-26

  Abstract

This dataset shows the Poverty rate, poverty gap, poverty density and the percentage of poor housing at Location level in Kenya in 1999. This dataset was originally collected by Kenya National Bureau of Statistics Each row in this dataset represents… See the full description on the dataset page: https://huggingface.co/datasets/electricsheepafrica/africa-poverty-rate-gap-density-and-the-percentage-of-poor-housing-at-location-level-in-kenya-in.

Africa — WHO GHO: Population pushed below a relative poverty line by household health expenditures - 60% of median daily per capita consumption or income (%, national, rural, urban)

Indicator code: FINPROTECTION_IMP_NPRELPL_POP HuggingFace slug: electricsheepafrica/africa-who-population-pushed-below-a-relative-poverty-line-by Source: WHO Global Health Observatory License: CC BY 4.0 — WHO Open Data

  Dataset Description

This dataset contains country-level observations… See the full description on the dataset page: https://huggingface.co/datasets/electricsheepafrica/africa-who-population-pushed-below-a-relative-poverty-line-by.

ZA: Poverty Headcount Ratio at $2.15 a Day: 2017 PPP: % of Population data was reported at 20.500 % in 2014. This records an increase from the previous number of 18.000 % for 2010. ZA: Poverty Headcount Ratio at $2.15 a Day: 2017 PPP: % of Population data is updated yearly, averaging 28.300 % from Dec 1993 (Median) to 2014, with 6 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 36.800 % in 2000 and a record low of 18.000 % in 2010. ZA: Poverty Headcount Ratio at $2.15 a Day: 2017 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: Social: Poverty and Inequality. Poverty headcount ratio at $2.15 a day is the percentage of the population living on less than $2.15 a day at 2017 purchasing power adjusted 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, 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).

County poverty rates estimates based on KIHBS data for Constituencies in 2005/6

Multidimensional Poverty Headcount Ratio: UNDP: % of total population data was reported at 6.300 % in 2016. Multidimensional Poverty Headcount Ratio: UNDP: % of total population data is updated yearly, averaging 6.300 % from Dec 2016 (Median) to 2016, with 1 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 6.300 % in 2016 and a record low of 6.300 % in 2016. Multidimensional Poverty Headcount Ratio: UNDP: % of total 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: Social: Poverty and Inequality. The multidimensional poverty headcount ratio (UNDP) is the percentage of a population living in poverty according to UNDPs multidimensional poverty index. The index includes three dimensions -- health, education, and living standards.;Alkire, S., Mishra, R., Selden, L. and Suppa, N. (2025). ‘The global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) 2025: Country results and methodological note’, OPHI MPI Methodological Note 61, Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI), University of Oxford.url: https://ophi.org.uk/publications/MN-61, uri: https://ophi.org.uk/publications/MN-61, publisher: Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI);NA;

South Africa ZA: Survey Mean Consumption or Income per Capita: Bottom 40% of Population: Annualized Average Growth Rate data was reported at -1.550 % in 2014. South Africa ZA: Survey Mean Consumption or Income per Capita: Bottom 40% of Population: Annualized Average Growth Rate data is updated yearly, averaging -1.550 % from Dec 2014 (Median) to 2014, with 1 observations. South Africa ZA: Survey Mean Consumption or Income per Capita: Bottom 40% of Population: Annualized Average Growth Rate 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: Poverty. The growth rate in the welfare aggregate of the bottom 40% is computed as the annualized average growth rate in per capita real consumption or income of the bottom 40% of the population in the income distribution in a country from household surveys over a roughly 5-year period. Mean per capita real consumption or income is measured at 2011 Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) using the PovcalNet (http://iresearch.worldbank.org/PovcalNet). For some countries means are not reported due to grouped and/or confidential data. The annualized growth rate is computed as (Mean in final year/Mean in initial year)^(1/(Final year - Initial year)) - 1. The reference year is the year in which the underlying household survey data was collected. In cases for which the data collection period bridged two calendar years, the first year in which data were collected is reported. The initial year refers to the nearest survey collected 5 years before the most recent survey available, only surveys collected between 3 and 7 years before the most recent survey are considered. The final year refers to the most recent survey available between 2011 and 2015. Growth rates for Iraq are based on survey means of 2005 PPP$. The coverage and quality of the 2011 PPP price data for Iraq and most other North African and Middle Eastern countries were hindered by the exceptional period of instability they faced at the time of the 2011 exercise of the International Comparison Program. See PovcalNet for detailed explanations.; ; World Bank, Global Database of Shared Prosperity (GDSP) circa 2010-2015 (http://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/poverty/brief/global-database-of-shared-prosperity).; ; The comparability of welfare aggregates (consumption or income) for the chosen years T0 and T1 is assessed for every country. If comparability across the two surveys is a major concern for a country, the selection criteria are re-applied to select the next best survey year(s). Annualized growth rates are calculated between the survey years, using a compound growth formula. The survey years defining the period for which growth rates are calculated and the type of welfare aggregate used to calculate the growth rates are noted in the footnotes.

Relative Wealth Index

Publisher: AI for Good at Meta · Source: HDX · License: hdx-other · Updated: 2026-03-26

  Abstract

The Relative Wealth Index predicts the relative standard of living within countries using de-identified connectivity data, satellite imagery and other nontraditional data sources. The data is provided for 93 low and middle-income countries at 2.4km resolution. Please cite / attribute any use of this dataset using the following: Microestimates of wealth… See the full description on the dataset page: https://huggingface.co/datasets/electricsheepafrica/africa-poverty-all.