One in six people live in Sub-Saharan Africa, but it accounts for two-thirds of global extreme poverty

Every twelfth person in the world still lives in extreme poverty. That means surviving on less than $2.15 per day (adjusted for differences in living costs between countries).

For many, that means struggling to afford nutritious food, not being able to afford basic healthcare, safe sanitation, or electricity.

So, where do most people in extreme poverty live? The chart shows that Sub-Saharan Africa, which is home to just 16% of the global population, now accounts for 67% of people living in extreme poverty.

This distribution is very different from 25 years ago. In 2000, Asia was home to most of the world’s population living in extreme poverty. However, strong economic growth in recent decades has led to steep reductions in poverty. Progress in Sub-Saharan Africa has been much slower.

If we're serious about ending extreme poverty worldwide, supporting economic development in Sub-Saharan Africa has to be a top priority. The recent progress achieved by some African countries reminds us that meaningful change is within reach.

Explore more data on extreme poverty →

Where this page came from

This page was imported from Our World in Data. “One in six people live in Sub-Saharan Africa, but it accounts for two-thirds of global extreme poverty” by Simon van Teutem, published by Our World in Data under CC BY 4.0. Changed here: set as a page, its interactive charts shown as pictures. Data from third parties keeps its own licence.

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