The World Bank has warned that eradicating poverty for nearly half the global population could take more than 100 years, based on current trends. This stark projection comes from the Bank’s newly released Poverty, Prosperity, and Planet Report, the first comprehensive post-pandemic assessment of global efforts to combat poverty and promote shared prosperity in a sustainable manner.
The report highlights that approximately 44% of the world’s population, or about 3.6 billion people, live on less than $6.85 per day. This poverty line reflects conditions typical of upper-middle-income countries. The figure has remained largely unchanged since 1990 due to population growth, despite some progress made in other areas.
For the world’s poorest, defined as those surviving on less than $2.15 per day—often in low-income and fragile states, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa—the outlook is bleak. Almost 700 million people, or 8.5% of the global population, currently live under this threshold, and the report warns that the global goal to eliminate extreme poverty by 2030 is unattainable. It could take three more decades to achieve this milestone.
Key Challenges Hindering Progress
The World Bank attributes these setbacks to a confluence of global crises, including slow economic growth, rising debt, conflicts, climate shocks, and the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Axel van Trotsenburg, the Bank’s Senior Managing Director, emphasized the need for a new development approach, stating, “A business-as-usual approach will no longer work. We need a fundamentally new development playbook if we are to truly improve people’s lives and protect our planet.”
Indermit Gill, Chief Economist of the World Bank Group, underscored that low-income countries face difficult trade-offs in their development objectives. However, he also noted potential synergies, such as policies aimed at reducing air pollution, which could contribute to both climate and developmental goals.
Gill stressed the importance of well-executed government initiatives, particularly in agriculture, where equipping farmers with climate-smart technologies could help reduce poverty, boost prosperity, and protect the environment.
Global Inequality and Vulnerability
The report also sheds light on high-income inequality, particularly in Latin America, the Caribbean, and Sub-Saharan Africa, where 1.7 billion people—20% of the global population—live in economies with significant wealth disparities. Such inequality hampers socioeconomic mobility and inclusive growth.
In addition, the World Bank warns that nearly one in five people globally will likely face a severe weather shock within their lifetime, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa, where many are already highly vulnerable to climate impacts. The report notes that future poverty reduction efforts must be linked to economic growth that is less carbon-intensive than in the past.
While reducing extreme poverty (below the $2.15 per day threshold) would have a negligible impact on global emissions due to the limited carbon contributions of the poorest countries, tackling poverty at the $6.85 per day level could lead to a significant rise in emissions.
Tailored Solutions for Different Economies
The World Bank calls for tailored strategies depending on a country’s income level. Low-income nations should focus on poverty reduction through economic growth, job creation, and investments in human capital and infrastructure, while also enhancing their resilience to shocks. Middle-income countries, on the other hand, should prioritize inclusive income growth that reduces vulnerability to shocks and lowers carbon emissions.
For high-income and upper-middle-income countries, the priority should be on cutting carbon emissions while managing the short-term costs of such transitions, including potential job losses, particularly for those most vulnerable to poverty.
The report concludes with a call for strengthened international cooperation and increased financial support for sustainable development, essential for creating more resilient and inclusive global economies.
