United Nations: Global Poverty Index rises for the first time since its launch

This increase is the first of its kind to be recorded in sixteen years, according to the two organizations.

UNDP Administrator Alexander De Croo said in a statement, "This rise in poverty rates must serve as a wake-up call for the entire world."

He added, "Behind these numbers, there are 1.2 billion people facing difficulties that create a vicious cycle of hunger, school dropouts, and a lack of access to drinking water or electricity."

According to the UNDP and the Oxford Initiative, more than half of the affected people (51.5%) are minors.

However, the two organizations point out that population growth is a key factor in this rise, and that new data were only available for 13 out of the 108 countries covered by the report.

Despite the rise in the total number of people living in poverty, the report paints a mixed picture; over the past fifteen years, 33 countries have succeeded in halving the proportion of their population living in poverty, as defined by the index.

Among these countries, six are located in sub-Saharan Africa. According to the UNDP, the fastest rates of progress were recorded in Asia, particularly in China and Vietnam.

Extreme poverty continues to affect rural areas more than urban areas, as nearly 83.3% of the world's poor live in rural regions.

As was the case the previous year, the majority of the poorest people live in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, i.e., the Indian subcontinent, which is the most densely populated region in the world.

Alexander De Croo said, "We know that progress is possible, as countries that have faced these challenges collectively rather than working in isolation have proven what can be achieved through decisive action."

"Multidimensional poverty" has many indicators, particularly related to the lack of adequate housing, sanitation systems, electricity, cooking fuel, food, and access to education.