These are lists of countries of the world by percentage of population living in poverty. "Poverty" defined as an economic condition of lacking both money and basic necessities needed to successfully live, such as food, water, education, healthcare, and shelter. There are many working definitions of "poverty," with considerable debate on how to best define the term. Income security, economic stability and the predictability of one's continued means to meet basic needs all serve as absolute indicators of poverty. Poverty may therefore also be defined as the economic condition of lacking predictable and stable means of meeting basic life needs.
- The first table lists countries by the percentage of the poorest population living under 2 and 1 dollar a day. The sourced data refers to the most recent year available during the period 1990-2005.
- The second table lists countries by the percentage of the population living below the national poverty line —the poverty line deemed appropriate for a country by its authorities. National estimates are based on population-weighted subgroup estimates from household surveys. Definitions of the poverty line may vary considerably among nations. For example, rich nations generally employ more generous standards of poverty than poor nations. Thus, the numbers are not strictly comparable among countries.
Only countries for which sourced data is available are listed.
Population living under 2 and
1 dollar (PPP) a day (%) |
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Population living below national poverty line (%) |
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