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Website:chem-tox-ecotox.org/ScientificReviews….July 2023
World Bank Report: Extreme Poverty is Rising Again.
From 660 million people (8.5% world population)
in 2019 to 733 million in 2022.
Professor Athanasios Valavanidis
Department of Chemistry, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, University
Campus Zografou, 15784 Athens, Greece
Abstract
Poverty is a state of deprivation in which people or communities lack access to
resources and basic necessities needed to live a healthy and dignified life. Living in
poverty means not being able to afford medical care or access to basics such as
electricity, drinking water, shelter, and food. Improper nutrition can cause stunting
and wasting, permanently impacting children‘s development. Global poverty in some
countries is connected to lack of access to clean drinking water and sanitation, which
in turn leads to the spread of preventable diseases and unnecessary deaths,
particularly of children. Historically, poverty has been calculated based on a person‘s
income. Global poverty is one of the most urgent issues facing our world today. At
present, according to the World Bank is affecting 9.2% of the world population. Some
parts of the world (Asia countries, China, India, north Africa) have made progress in
reducing poverty levels, the pandemic of COVID-10, ongoing civil conflicts, and
natural weather disasters have exacerbated poverty rates and slowed progress
toward the United Nations‘ Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) for eliminating
extreme poverty by 2030.
The United Nations, Millennium Development Goal 1, Eradicated Extreme Poverty
and Hunger and is aiming to end Poverty and Hunger everywhere (globally) by 2030.
Global extreme poverty fell back to pre-pandemic levels in 2022 but the SDG
(Sustainable Development Goal) to end global extreme poverty by 2030 is now well
off track
African countries are facing chronic hunger for the 20% of its population (compared
to 10% globally). Russia‘s war in Ukraine has exacerbated food supply in many
countries in Africa. World Hunger Index. The ten poorest countries in Africa are:
Western Sahara, Burundi, Somalia, Central African Republic (CAR), Mozambique,
Madagascar, Sierra Leone, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Niger, Eritrea.
Ethiopia remains one of the poorest countries in the world, the second-most
populous country in Africa, with a population of 100 million.
Fast economic growth has helped to significantly reduced poverty in Asia and the
Pacific over the years. However, much still needs to be done in a region that is home
to about 2/3 of the world's poor.
In 2020 the World Bank report (7.10.2020) estimated that Extreme poverty is set to
rise this year for the first time in more than two decades. According to the World
Bank report the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic expected to push up the number of
people to 115 million people into the extreme poverty category.
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Introduction: Global poverty in 2020, 9% of people are living
below the poverty line
Global poverty is one of the most pressing problems that the world
faces today. The poorest in the world are often undernourished, without
access to basic services such as electricity and safe drinking water and living
in substandard housing. Poor people also have less access to education, and
suffer from much poorer health, higher infant mortality and stunting (restricted
growth and development in young children).
According to World Bank and international surveys, global poverty
declined from 35% in the 1990s dropping in 2020 to 9.2% of the world
population. While some parts of the world have made substantial progress in
reducing poverty levels, the COVID-19 pandemic, ongoing conflicts (civil
wars), climate crises, lack of water, and natural disasters have exacerbated
poverty rates. The United Nations‘ Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) for
eliminating extreme poverty by 2030 is the most ambitious goal.
Figure 1. Extreme poverty is set to rise this year for the first time in more than
two decades. According to the World Bank the pandemic of coronavirus
expected to push up to 115 million people into that category. Extreme poverty
is defined as living on less than $1.90 (£1.50) a day. Despite great progress,
there are still 736 million people globally who live in extreme poverty.
[https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/extreme-poverty-definition-statistics-
rate/?gclid= ].
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What does it mean people living in extreme poverty
People living in poverty on a global scale are among the most
vulnerable in society for developed and developing countries.
Figure 2. Poor children at a food distribution camp in New Delhi, India. These
pictures are not only from the most populous country in the world, but can be
found in many developing countries. In recent decades distribution of food for
poor people and families in developed countries is a fact.
In 1990 it was estimated that 2 billion people globally (or 38% of the
world population) were living below the extreme poverty line. The most
ambitious United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) was to
reduce extreme global poverty below 10% in the era 2000-2020 especially.
The United Nations started 25 years ago pioneering efforts on a global
scale that have led to profound achievements of reducing extreme poverty. In
1990, nearly 50% of the population in developing (and Third World countries)
nations lived on less than $1.25 a day. As of 2015, that proportion has
dropped to 14%. The number of people living in extreme poverty worldwide
has reduced by more than 50%. In 1990, 1.9 billion people were said to be
living in extreme poverty, compared to 836 million in 2015. Most progress was
seen in the new millennium (2000-, ).
The number of living on more than $4 a day – those in the working
middle class – has nearly tripled between 1991 and 2015. In 1991, this group
made only 18% of the population, and rose to 50% in 2015. The proportion of
undernourished people in the developing world has dropped by almost 50%
since 1990; from 23.3% percent in 1990 – ‘92 to 13 percent in 2014 – ‘16.
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The COVID-19 pandemic has caused unprecedented reversals in
global poverty reduction and global food production. These trends have been
exacerbated by rising inflation and the effects of the war in Ukraine. Ukraine
normally is the world's top producer of sunflower meal, oil, and seed and the
world's top exporter of sunflower meal and oil. Also Ukraine exports corn (12%
of the world‘s export) and wheat (9% of the global exports). The World Bank
estimates that these combined global crises will lead to an additional 75
million to 95 million people living in extreme poverty in 2022, compared to pre-
pandemic projections. [World Bank, Extreme Poverty 2015-2022,
https://www.worldbank.org/ en/topic/poverty].
Note on global poverty lines: These estimates (from early 2022) are
calculated using the US$1.90 per person per day poverty line, which was
updated in September 2022 to US$2.15 per person per day. Poverty data are
now expressed in 2017 Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) prices, versus 2011
PPP in previous editions. The new global poverty lines of $2.15, $3.65, and
$6.85 reflect the typical national poverty lines of low-income, lower-middle-
income, and upper-middle-income countries in 2017 prices.
Figure 3. The United Nations, Millennium Development Goal 1, Eradicated
Extreme Poverty and Hunger and is aiming to end Poverty and Hunger
everywhere (globally) by 2030.
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The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), also known as the
Global Goals, were adopted by the United Nations in 2015 as a universal call
to action to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure that by 2030 all people
enjoy peace and prosperity (adequate food, quality education and sustainable
health facilities and adequate medical staff).
Global extreme poverty fell back to pre-pandemic levels in 2022 but the
SDG (Sustainable Development Goal) to end global extreme poverty by 2030
is now well off track. In 2019 (the most recent year for which global estimates
from the World Bank are available), 660 million people were living in extreme
poverty (8.5% of the world population). But in 2020, that number increased
and was estimated to be at 733 million; in 2022. The number of people living
in extreme poverty has more than halved since 1990, but 8.5% of the world‘s
population is still living below the $2.15 poverty line (established by the World
Bank for comparison).
Figure 4. There are 17 goals to transform our world. The sustainable
development Goals are: No Poverty, Zero Hunger, Good Health, Quality
Education, Gender Equality, Clean Drinking Water and Sanitation, Affordable
Clean Energy, Decent Work and Economic Growth, Industry Innovation and
Infrastructure, Reduced Inequalities, Sustainable Cities and Communities,
Responsible Consumption and Production, Climate Action, Life Below Water
(fisheries) , Life on Land, Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions, Partnerships
for the Goals.
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Why so many countries in Africa are in extreme poverty
Population growth in the last 20 years on the African continent was
rapid, despite numerous prevention and education campaigns. Developmental
success and economic growth cannot keep pace with population growth. The
result was that more and more people in Africa countries to live in extreme
poverty. According to a recent study by UNICEF, the population of Africa will
double by 2050 to two billion people.
Civil war conflicts. Of the world's 20 war-related conflicts in 2020s,
almost half were fought on the African continent. All these civil wars are taken
place in sub-Saharan Africa countries. The scourge of armed conflict in sub-
Saharan Africa persisted in 2021 and early 2022. According to the Institute for
Economics and Peace‘s Global Peace Index 2022, 5 of the 10 least-peaceful
countries globally were in the region: the Central African Republic, Democratic
Republic of the Congo, Somalia, South Sudan and Sudan.
Figure 5. Around 20% of people in Africa are facing chronic hunger
(compared to 10% globally). Russia‘s war in Ukraine has exacerbated food
supply in many countries in Africa. World Hunger Index. The ten poorest
countries in Africa are: Western Sahara, Burundi, Somalia, Central African
Republic (CAR), Mozambique, Madagascar, Sierra Leone, the Democratic
Republic of the Congo, Niger, Eritrea. Ethiopia remains one of the poorest
countries in the world, the second-most populous country in Africa, with a
population of 100 million.
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The African continent has been suffering more from climate crises in
recent decades: devastating floods and extraordinary droughts, leading to
devastating crop and food failures. In many regions of Africa, roads, wells,
irrigation systems, storage facilities, agricultural machinery and agricultural
infrastructure and expertise are very low quality. Fighting poverty in moist
African countries is inadequate as a result of extreme corruption, bad
governance and high-income inequality among populations. poverty in
economic terms. Extreme poverty is increasingly concentrated in Sub-
Saharan Africa in 1990. Surveys estimated that 13% of Sub-Saharan people
were living in extreme poverty in 2022 (Uganda, Sudan, Mauritius, Nigeria,
South Africa, Mozambique, Cameroon, Ghana, Kenya).
Figure 6. In 2022, the Horn of Africa is at the center of a food crisis due to an
ongoing drought—the worst the area has seen in more than 40 years.
The latest estimates in Sub-Saharan region show that the regional
extreme poverty rate decreased by 1.6% points between 2015 and 2018. This
translates to 40% of the population living below the US$1.90-a-day poverty
line in 2018 and Sub-Saharan Africa accounting for 2/3 of the global extreme
poor population. While the poverty rate has decreased from 56% in 1990 to
40% in 2018 the number of poor continues to rise. The poverty rate in Sub-
Saharan Africa has not fallen fast enough to keep up with population growth in
the region and 433 million Africans are estimated to live in extreme poverty
rising from 284 in 1990. [https://blogs.worldbank.org/opendata/number-poor-
people-continues-rise-sub-saharan-africa-despite-slow-decline-poverty-rate ].
As a whole in Africa, most poverty is concentrated in the Sub-Saharan
Africa region. Whereas Central Africa has the highest extreme poverty rate of
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55%, followed by Southern Africa at 45%. Rates of extreme poverty in
Western and Eastern Africa are 37% and 34% respectively. North Africa
(Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt) met the SDG target of a poverty rate
below 3% in 2019. It is estimated that 278 million people in Africa suffer from
chronic hunger (20% of the total population).
The proportion of people living in extreme poverty in the East Asia an
Pacific region has significantly decreased in recent decades. In 1990, 53% of
people living in extreme poverty, lived in East Asia and the Pacific, now the
proportion decreased to only 4% in 202 (China, Japan, S. Korea, etc).
Asia and Pacific countries have reduced significantly poverty
Fast economic growth has helped to significantly reduced poverty in
Asia and the Pacific over the years. However, much still needs to be done in a
region that is home to about 2/3 of the world's poor. Asian countries have a
success story in fighting poverty in the last 20 years.
In December 2020, China declared it had eliminated extreme poverty
completely. India represents a more recent success story. Strong economic
growth drove poverty rates down to 77 million, or 6% of the population, in
2019. Over the past 40 years, the number of people in China with incomes
below $1.90 per day has fallen by close to 800 million. With this, China has
contributed close to 3/4 of the global reduction in the number of people living
in extreme poverty. [https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/
2022/04/01/lifting-800-million-people-out-of-poverty-new-report-looks-at-
lessons-from-china-s-experience ].
India and China in the last decades have experienced the greatest
national reductions in people living in extreme poverty. India has 1.4286 billion
population (2022), 2.9 million more than China with 1.4 billion population.
More than 1.1 billion people living in China and India moved out of extreme
poverty in the last 30 years (between 1990 and 2022).
In September 2022, the World Bank updated the extreme poverty line
from $1.90 to $2.15 per person per day. This change in most countries did not
alter the proportion of people living in extreme poverty. According to the
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World Bank, about 9.2% of the world (719 million people), live in extreme
poverty, on less than $2.15 a day. In the USA 11.6% of the population (37.9
million people) lived in poverty in 2021. These numbers are calculated based
on income and a person‘s ability to meet basic needs. However, when looking
beyond income to people experiencing deprivations in health, education, and
living standards, 1.2 billion people in 111 developing countries are
multidimensionally poor (2022 U.N. Development Programme report).
[https://www.worldvision.org/sponsorship-news-stories/global-poverty-
facts#:~:text=BA...]. [ https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/factsheet/
2022/05/02/fact-sheet-an-adjustment-to-global-poverty-lines ]
Extreme population poverty is set to rise
In 2020 the World Bank report (7.10.2020) estimated that Extreme
poverty is set to rise this year for the first time in more than two decades.
According to the World Bank report the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic
expected to push up the number of people to 115 million people into the
extreme poverty category. The World Bank is reporting that the pandemic is
compounding the forces of civil conflict (internal civil wars and fighting) and
extreme climate change (flooding, droughts, hurricanes, etc), which were
already slowing poverty reduction in many areas of the world.
Extreme poverty is defined by the World Bank as living on less than
$1.90 (£1.50) a day. According to the World Bank report, the world is unlikely
to meet the goal of ending extreme poverty by 2030.
[https://reliefweb.int/report/world/global-progress-reducing-extreme-poverty-
grinds-halt-enarruzh ].
The study finds that COVID-19 dealt the biggest setback to global
poverty-reduction efforts since 1990 and the war in Ukraine threatens to make
matters worse. The World Bank‘s latest Poverty and Shared Prosperity
Report provided the first comprehensive look at the global landscape of
poverty in the aftermath of the extraordinary series of shocks to the global
economy over the past few years. It estimates that the pandemic pushed
about 70 million people into extreme poverty in 2020, the largest one-year
increase since global poverty monitoring began in 1990. As a result, an
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estimated 719 million people subsisted on less than $2.15 a day by the end of
2020.
―…….Progress in reducing extreme poverty has essentially halted in
tandem with subdued global economic growth (World Bank Group President
David Malpass). Adjustments of macroeconomic policies are needed to
improve the allocation of global capital, foster currency stability, reduce
inflation, and restart growth in median income. The report indicates 2020
marked a historic turning point—when the era of global income convergence
yielded to divergence. The poorest people bore the steepest costs of the
pandemic: income losses averaged 4% for the poorest 40%, double the
losses of the wealthiest 20% of the income distribution. Global inequality rose,
as a result, for the first time in decades……‖.
Extreme poverty set for first rise since 1998, World Bank warns
(7.10.2020). The World Bank Handbook on Poverty and Inequality
(Haughton & Khandker, 2009 ) suggests it is important to measure poverty in
order to:
The Handbook on Poverty and Inequality identifies three steps that
need to be taken in measuring poverty (Haughton & Khandker, 2009 ):
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Most rich countries measure poverty using income, as it is
comparatively easy to measure (much of it comes from wages and salaries),
while consumption expenditure is more complex and hard to quantify. Allso
important to account for wealth from assets which can be measured using
Inland Revenue taxation data (Piketty, 2014).1,2,3
Most poor countries use expenditure to measure poverty. Expenditure
is easier to track than income, which comes largely comes from self-
employment and/or irregular and informal sources (Haughton & Khandker,
2009). Some analysts argue that expenditure is a better indicator of poverty
because it shows more accurately whether a person has enough to meet
current basic needs (Coudouel et al., 2002). Access and availability are
needed alongside income, for the consumption of goods.4
Is there extreme poverty in developed countries ?
Poverty has multiple root causes beyond just a lack of basic
necessities like food, shelter, education, or healthcare. Discrimination based
on gender or ethnicity, poor governance, conflict, exploitation, and domestic
violence are all factors that contribute to poverty. These inequities trap people
and communities in poverty, and limit access to social services that could help
people overcome it. Also, political instability in a country can be a serious
cause of poverty for some sections of the population even in developed
countries. Other causes are past or present social conflicts, racism, corrupt
leaders in public places, and poor infrastructure (schools, hospital, public
utilities).
Even in developed countries, when families lack the means to send
their children to school, inevitably are drifting to petty crime or poor quality
manual jobs. Lack of appropriate housing can play a negative role. When
communities lack access to clean drinking water, women and girls spend
many hours each day gathering water, leaving little time for school or a
livelihood. When medical facilities are far away, families lose income if they
take time off work to care for sick loved ones. Natural disasters and conflict
can exacerbate this cycle, putting vulnerable communities at even greater
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risk. When natural disasters strike in areas without strong public institutions,
families may lack the resources to recover, thus further entrenching them in
poverty.
There are a variety of factors that may reinforce or instigate the
existence of extreme poverty, such as weak social and local administrative
institutions, cycles of violence in some communities and a low level of
economic and social growth. Recent World Bank research showed that some
countries can get caught in a "fragility trap", in which self-reinforcing factors
prevent the poorest nations from emerging from low-level equilibrium in the
long run. Social scientists noticed that most of the reduction in extreme
poverty over the past 20 years has taken place in developing and developed
countries that have not experienced a civil conflict or have had governing
institutions with a strong capacity to actually govern. The recovery since then
has been uneven. Rising food and energy prices—fueled in part by the war in
Ukraine and by climate shocks and conflict—have hindered a swift recovery.
By the end of 2022, as many as 685 million people could still be living in
extreme poverty. The recent setbacks took place when the speed of progress
toward poverty reduction was already slowing. The recent crises have pushed
the world further off track from the global goal of ending extreme poverty by
2030. The challenge to overturn poverty is made harder by the fact that
extreme poverty is concentrated in parts of the world where it will be hardest
to eradicate (Sub-Saharan Africa). [World Bank, Poverty Overview,
30.11.2022, https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/poverty/overview ].
Poverty levels in USA and the United Kingdom (UK)
The study of poverty in developed countries, like USA and the UK,
showed some very interesting differences in the causes of .poverty in the
working populations of the two countries. Poverty is not a function only of the
average income in a society but also its distribution. Consequently, countries
with the same income levels can have different poverty levels if the
distribution varies across them. A study (2020) estimated the poverty level in
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the USA and the UK during the 2004–2016 period and analysed the cause of
the poverty difference. The results show that poverty in the US is more
serious than that in the UK. Although the overall income in the US is higher
than that in the UK, the poor in the US, especially the ultra-poor, are poorer
than those in the UK. Gross Domestic Product per capita in USA $70.000 in
2021, and UK GPD per capita was $41.600 in 2020.
The inequality in the US is higher than that in the UK, which offsets the
contribution of the higher income and renders the higher poverty level in the
US as the dominant factor. Studies showed that poverty is a function of not
only the average income in a society but also its distribution among the whole
spectrum of the population. The USA and UK have been mentioned in some
comparative studies as they are similar in many aspects.5,6,7
The myth that the poor in the United States are not so bad off can
be found in a wide range of opinions expressed in the literature or articles.
Basically it reflects the idea that those in poverty have nothing to complain
about – that given the conditions in less developed countries, things could
be much worse. It is certainly true that if we compare the poverty in the
richest country of the world, like U.S.A., to countries in sub-Saharan Africa,
physical poverty in the U.S. is obviously less extreme. The USA does not
have the widespread famine and severe stunting of children that is sometimes
found in extremely poor countries. In comparing poverty in the U.S. to other
developed OECD countries, it was obvious that American poverty is both
more prevalent and more extreme.
Figure 7. 37.9 million Americans live in poverty (11.6% of the total population)
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As of January 2021, 37.9 million Americans lived in poverty, accounting
for 11.6% of the total population, according to the latest report from the United
States Census Bureau. Over 34 million Americans face hunger each and
every day including 1 in 8 children. If we think about hunger as most of us
experience it, as a temporary sensation, the solution to this problem is
straightforward: we just need to get more food to people who don‘t have
enough. [ CNBC, 3.7.2023, https://www.cnbc.com/2023/03/07/why-poverty-
might-be-far-worse-in-the-us-than-its-reported.html#:~:text=A ].
How Does the U.S. Compare to Other Countries?
Scientists compared poverty rates across 26 OECD countries (the
most developed countries of the world, Canada, Japan, Eiuorpe, USA, etc)
and in the USA. Poverty was measured as the percent (%) of the population
falling below one half of a particular country‘s median household income. This
is what is known as a relative measure of poverty, and is used extensively in
making cross-national comparisons. Analysis of data showed that the U.S.
rates of poverty are substantially higher and more extreme than those found
in the other 25 OECD nations. The overall U.S. rate using this measure
stands at 17.8% percent, compared to the 25 country average of 10.7%. The
Scandinavian (Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark) and Benelux countries
(Switzerland, Belgium, Netherlands, etc.) tend to have the lowest rates of
poverty. For example, the overall rate of poverty in Denmark is only 5.5%.
Looking at the poverty rates for children we see similar patterns. The
United States again leads all nations in having the highest rates of child
poverty at 20.9%, while the overall average stands at 11.7%. Again, we see
the Scandinavian countries having the lowest rates of child poverty, with
Denmark seeing only 2.9% of its children falling into poverty. Also, the
average income of the poor in the USA falls below the poverty line. This gives
us an overall gauge of the depth and severity of poverty in each country.
Analytical data find that the USA is at the very high end in terms of this
measure. The distance between the poor‘s average income and the poverty
line is nearly 40%. Only Italy has a greater poverty gap than the U.A.
Analyzing poverty as the number of persons who fall below 50% of a country‘s
median income, analysis of statistical data find that the USA has far and away
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the highest overall poverty rate in this group of 26 OECD developed nations.
Furthermore, the distance of the poor from the overall median income is
extreme in the U.SA. It must be noted that USA is arguably the wealthiest
nation in the world. This paradox is revealed in additional analyses that have
examined how well children and adults from the lower, middle, and upper
ends of the income scale do. Not surprisingly, the USA has the highest
standards of living at the middle and upper ends of the income distribution
scale, yet for children at the lower end, their standards of living fall behind
most other industrialized nations (OECD countries).
[ Confronting Poverty, Poverty Facts and Myths, America‘s poor are worse off
than elsewhere, https://confrontingpoverty.org/poverty-facts-and-
myths/americas-poor-are-worse-off-than-elsewhere/ ].
Poverty statistics in the United Kingdom (UK)
Before the coronaviru-19 pandemic (2019), more than 20% people in
the UK lived in poverty according to the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, UK
poverty report for 2020/21. It was estimated that 14 million people, 1/5 of the
population, lived in poverty. It is estimated that 4 million of these are more
than 50% below the poverty line, and 1.5 million are destitute, unable to afford
basic essentials. The rising cost of living (food) in the last few years and
energy cost was hitting poor people on low incomes hardest, putting immense
pressure on already stretched household finances. The Institute for Fiscal
Studies (UK) has found that inflation for those on low incomes was 3% higher
than that being experienced by wealthier families.
` Child poverty in the UK is defined by the Child Poverty Action Group
as existing when parents can‘t afford to pay for basics such as food, housing
and clothes - it affects one in four children in the UK. Also, 46% of children
from black and minority ethnic groups are in poverty in the UK, compared with
26% of children in white British families (End Child Poverty, 2020).
Also, living without the security of decent housing with constant
pressure created by low paid work or unemployment has significant
consequences for emotional and psychological well-being, health, family
relationships and the lives of children. [Quaker Social Action, UK, 2023,
https://quakersocialaction.org.uk/sharing-our-learning/poverty-uk?gclid=C ].
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Editorial in the prestigious scientific journal Nature on
extreme poverty (28. 6.2023)
In 28 June 2023 , Nature “… A decades-long decline in extreme poverty
has gone into reverse — here’s how to fix things….”
“…. Factors ranging from COVID-19 to Russia‟s war in Ukraine are
increasing extreme poverty. Finding effective solutions starts with agreeing on
how to measure what poverty means. By 2030, according to the World Bank,
something like 574 million people (globally) will be living in extreme poverty.
That is equivalent to the combined population of the European Union and
Japan. The United Nations (UN) has a Sustainable Development Goal (SDG)
to eradicate extreme poverty by 2030; this was always ambitious, even when
policymakers and researchers set the SDGs in 2015. It is now unattainable.
The past few years have bucked a positive trend. Back in 1990, almost two
billion people were living under the extreme-poverty line, which the World
Bank currently defines as an income of no more than US$2.15 a day at 2017
prices. By 2015, there were fewer than 700 million. Had that trend continued,
extreme poverty would have been eliminated by, and possibly before, the
SDG target…….”:
“……But the trend had started to slow by 2020, and the COVID-19
pandemic reversed it, forcing an extra 75 million people below the extreme-
poverty line. And the pandemic wasn‟t the only factor. Soaring food and
energy costs after Russia‟s invasion of Ukraine, ongoing conflicts and,
increasingly, the effects of climate change have all played a part. Extreme
poverty is starting to decline again, but it will take until 2024 to return to 2019
levels. A rethink in approach is clearly needed and researchers can get
involved…..‟.
“…..The World Bank (Washington DC), is one of the go-to agencies for
both measuring poverty and prescribing solutions to end it. Some 80% of
people who escaped poverty between 1993 and 2017 were in China and
India. These countries posted impressive economic growth figures for that
period. The bank says that, similarly, economic expansion in the countries
that now have the highest numbers of people in extreme poverty — most of
which are in sub-Saharan Africa would help them to follow China and India‟s
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lead.. Some researchers doubt that economic growth automatically leads to
reductions in extreme poverty, saying that it often coincides with widening
income inequality. But even if we accept the World Bank‟s premise, economic
growth rates across Africa have consistently been much lower than in China
and India, and on current trends they will remain so. That poses the question:
what other levers can countries pull to improve the lives of hundreds of
millions of people?... “.
“….One answer was established in many now-high-income countries
that were rebuilding after the Second World War. A number of countries in
Western Europe, for example, established basic social and health-care
protections at a time when many nations were dependent on aid from the
United States. The principle that these protections help people to escape
extreme poverty is just as valid today, and applying it would help countries to
build resilience to shocks such as pandemics and climate change…..‖.
Counting the cost of extreme poverty on a global scale
“……Even more fundamentally, researchers are advocating a rethink of
how poverty is measured. One problem with using an income-based measure
is that it excludes people who are earning more than $2.15 a day but are still
unable to fulfil their basic human needs. In 2010, researchers at the University
of Oxford, UK, working with the UN Development Programme (UNDP),
created the Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI). It is an estimate of the
number of households facing deprivation when measured by ten basic
indicators, including adequate housing, child mortality, clean water,
sanitation, cooking facilities and an electricity supply. By this measure,
some 1.2 billion people worldwide are living in acute poverty, almost 580
million of whom are in sub-Saharan Africa. The global figure is nearly double
that calculated on the basis of income. The UN currently uses the MPI to track
progress towards another SDG target: reducing by half the proportion of
people experiencing poverty in all its dimensions…”.
“…..In 2018, inspired by the MPI, the World Bank created the
Multidimensional Poverty Measure (MPM). This assesses the number of
households facing deprivation in five dimensions (educational attainment and
enrolment, and access to electricity, sanitation and drinking water). But unlike
18
the MPI, the MPM also includes the percentage of households living on less
than $2.15 a day. There are some gaps in the data. Some countries do not
provide researchers with access to the relevant data; in others, access is
possible but there are few on-the-ground resources to collect the information.
But where indicators of multidimensional poverty exist, they provide a
nuanced picture and help countries to target interventions. Researchers who
study poverty, and development agencies such as the UNDP, agree that a
multidimensional index ought to replace a simpler income-based measure.
This September, world leaders will gather in New York City to take stock of
the SDGs. One of their tasks must be to continue to nudge the World Bank to
make this change happen…..‖.
[ Nature 618, 886 (2023)
doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-023-02098-3 ].
A recent Nature editorial on hunger and famine, 4 July 2023
―…. Hunger and famine are not accidents — they are created by the
actions of people. Hundreds of millions of people are going hungry as conflicts
affect food supplies. There is also growing evidence that food producers are
exploiting the situation to increase their profits….‖.
“…..Around 200 million people are experiencing acute food insecurity.
They include some in Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Mali, Sudan and
Syria, countries that have something else in common: each is experiencing a
deadly conflict. These two situations — hunger and conflict — are connected.
In a report presented to the United Nations in March, the organization‟s
special rapporteur on the right to food, Michael Fakhri, said that violence and
conflict are in fact the primary causes of hunger worldwide. They are also
pivotal reasons that the world is not on track to end hunger and malnutrition
by 2030, a promise made by world leaders at a UN summit in 2015, as part of
the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)….”.
“…..This is alarming for a number of reasons. For one thing, it suggests
that, unless something is done, we are abandoning hundreds of millions of
people to severe hunger. Furthermore, crucial efforts to study and implement
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policies to end hunger are hampered when violence breaks out. In
September, heads of government will meet in New York City to work out what
can be done. Although the meeting takes a place at a time of great tension
between world powers, attendees must accept that the SDG to end hunger
will not be met unless violence is reduced — or, at the very least, unless
parties to conflict stop weaponizing food…..”.
“……Fakhri‟s report draws on decades of studies, as well as newer
data from bodies including the UN‟s World Food Programme and the Food
and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations. The report
describes the relationship between violence in various forms, including sexual
and gender-based violence, and food insecurity. Conflicts endanger food
security when, for example, crops are destroyed or food supplies are
disrupted — things that have happened, and continue to happen, in wars from
Mali to Myanmar. Coercive measures, such as international economic
sanctions against warring countries, also contribute to hunger. The evidence,
according to the report, is that „targeted‟ sanctions disrupt food systems, too.
―……The international community needs to stop weaponizing food in
conflicts, as has happened in Yemen (pictured).Credit: Ahmad Al-
Basha/AFP/Getty. The UN special rapporteur‘s report also brings home how
global economic events are exacerbating hunger and food insecurity. Food
prices have rocketed in most places, especially in low- and middle-income
countries (LMICs). In the rich countries that are members of the Organisation
for Economic Co-operation and Development, food-price inflation dropped to
around 12% on average in April, but it remains much higher in a number of
LMICs — 81% in Lebanon, 27% in Egypt and 30.5% in Zimbabwe, according
to World Bank data published last month (June 2023). That is down to
factors such as the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia‟s invasion of Ukraine.
20
The war affected the global supply of staple crops — before the invasion,
Russia and Ukraine together grew one-third of the world‟s wheat. The global
spike in energy prices is also affecting the ability of the poorest families to use
gas and other fuels for cooking…..”.
‗…….But researchers are reporting that food inflation is also partly
caused by producers, especially large firms, putting up prices to increase their
profits. Sellers can do this if they know that a buyer has no choice but to pay
more to obtain things they cannot do without, such as food and fuel — a
phenomenon that researchers call sellers‟ inflation. That might be one reason
that inflation remains stubbornly high, especially when it comes to food, and
that interventions such as raising interest rates have failed to reduce it.
“…..This is the conclusion of two working papers led by Isabella
Weber, an economist at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. In a
modelling study published last November, Weber and her co-authors found
that the prices of food and energy are the two largest drivers of inflation (I. M.
Weber et al. Economics Department Working Paper Series 340; 2022). In a
subsequent study, in February, the authors sampled a group of US
companies in these sectors and discovered that in 2022, profits were
responsible for as much inflation as wages, if not more (I. M. Weber and E.
Wasner Economics Department Working Paper Series 343; 2023)…..”
“……Weber‟s work is sparking change among some governments and
getting attention from financial institutions. The International Monetary Fund
found last month that corporate profits accounted for nearly half of inflation in
the euro area last year (N.-J. H. Hansen et al. IMF Working Paper No.
2023/131; 2023). Weber is among those advocating that governments put a
ceiling on some of the prices that producers can charge. However, many
academic economists — and the governments they advise — disagree,
saying that such price controls distort markets. The poorest people are caught
in the middle of this argument, experiencing harm as a result of both high
prices and policy delays. It‟s important for researchers to continue to uncover
evidence about what is exacerbating hunger and how it can be eliminated.
More could, for example, study how conflicts affect hunger on a more granular
level. They could analyse the components of inflation not only in Europe and
21
the United States, but in LMICs, too. Economist Amartya Sen demonstrated in
his 1981 book Poverty and Famines that hunger and famine are not
necessarily the result of food shortages, but created by the actions and
choices of people. Leaders could make good on their SDG pledge that hunger
and malnutrition must end, or they could continue to target food in conflicts.
Both are choices, as Fakhri says, and not predetermined outcomes….”
Nature 619, 8 (2023), doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-023-02207-2
……………………………………………………………………
Food Assistance Programmes on a global scale
The World Food Programme (WFP) is an international organization
within the United Nations that provides food assistance worldwide. It is the
world's largest humanitarian organization and the leading provider of school
meals. Founded in 1961, WFP is headquartered in Rome and has offices in
80 countries.
The WFP in 2022 on the global scale distributed 160 million people
who received food assistance. Every day the WFP uses 6.5 thousands of
trucks, 140 aircrafts and 20 ships, these are on the go on any given day. The
WFP in 2022 gave in 20 million children nutritious meals, or take –home
rations.
U.S. AID (Agency for International Development), What is Impact of
USAID on Global Food Assistance?
USAID is the world’s premier international development agency and a
catalytic actor driving development results. USAID’s work advances U.S.
national security and economic prosperity.
22
For over 60 years USAID food assistance programmes have operated
in 150 countries. In 2018 USAID provided food for over 3.7 billion people in
emergency and development food assistance. USAID contributed 2.5 million
metric tonnes of US food. Also, provided local and regionally procured
commodities, as well as cash transfers and food vouchers. USAID's
development food assistance activities focus predominantly on women and
children, to ensure adequate nourishment of children under age 2. USAID has
5 warehouse sites around the world where prepositioned food is ready to be
moved at a moment's notice to respond to emergency needs.
[https://www.usaid.gov/food-assistance/faq#:~:text=
In%20fiscal%20year%202018%2C%20USAID,cash%20transfers%20and%20
food%20vouchers]..
The United States is the largest individual country donor of
international food assistance. It spends about $4 billion per year to provide
international food assistance to food-insecure countries—in both emergency
food assistance to avert humanitarian crises and development assistance to
support agriculture and related sectors.
USAID aims to provide development food assistance to reduce food
insecurity among vulnerable populations and help build resilience in
communities facing chronic poverty and recurrent crises such as drought.
These USAID development activities tackle food insecurity holistically and
look beyond food to address the root causes of hunger and malnutrition. The
primary purposes of development food security activities are: Reduce chronic
malnutrition among children under two years of age and pregnant and
lactating mothers. Increase and diversify household income through
agriculture and other livelihood initiatives. Strengthen and diversify agricultural
production and productivity to build resilience and reduce the need for food
assistance.
WFP, UK, Germany and World Bank come together to expand risk financing
for communities vulnerable to climate shocks. 16.11.2022 [ World Food ,
Programme, https://www.wfp.org/news/wfp-uk-germany-and-world-bank-come-
together-expand-risk-financing-communities-vulnerable ]
The United Nation‘s World Food Programme (WFP) and the World
Bank signed an agreement today to scale up disaster risk protection financed
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by Germany and the United Kingdom for vulnerable communities and nations
faced with catastrophic climate extremes like storms and drought. As world
leaders confront the global climate crisis at the annual UN Climate Change
Conference (COP27), this initiative underscores the importance of investment
in climate action to protect vulnerable communities when disasters strike.
Under this agreement, WFP will receive US$20 million from Germany and the
United Kingdom through the World Bank‘s Global Shield Financing Facility.
The funding will support the expansion of WFP‘s climate and disaster risk
financing cover in 23 countries across the globe, protecting up to 4.6 million
people from climate risks over the next two years. The disaster risk finance
policies purchased by WFP through this contribution will complement those
purchased by governments, increasing the number of people protected and
strengthening responses so vulnerable people can be reached more quickly
as a climate-related disaster hits.
References
1. Haughton J, Khander SR. Handbook on Poverty and Inequality.
Washington DC, World Bank, 2009.
2. Piketty T, Saez E. Inequality in the long run. Science 344(6186):838-
843, 2014.
3. Piketty T. Capital in the Twenty-First Century, Harvard University Press,
Mass, Cambridge, 2014.
4. Coudounel A, Hentschel JS, Wodon QT. Poverty Mesurement and
Analysis. University Library of Munich, Germany, MPRA paper 10490.
5. Wang Z, Sun J. Explaining the poverty difference between the US and
the UK: a Shapley income-distribution decomposition approach. Applied
Economics Letters 27(17):1438-1441, 2020.
6. Blundell R., Joyce R, Keiller AN, Ziliak JP. Income Inequality and the
Labour Market in Britain and the US. Journal of Public Economics 162:
48–62, 2018.
7. Lindert PH. When Did Inequality Rise in Britain and America?. Journal of
Income Distribution 9 (1):11–25, 2000. doi: 10.1016/S0926-
6437(99)00012-8.
