editor: dion diom manias
Absolute poverty is the level of poverty where individuals and families cannot meet food, shelter, warmth, and safety needs, while relative poverty refers to economic disadvantage compared to wealthier members of society.
- Extreme poverty is a severe lack of material possessions or money, defined by the World Bank as living on less than US $1.25 a day.
- Poverty may correspond not only to lack of resources, but to lack of opportunity to improve one’s standard of living and acquire resources.
People who are homeless, hungry, or ill without access to treatment are examples of people who do not have access to the material resources they need to survive — they live in poverty as the term is used colloquially, and likely fall under formal income thresholds that designate individuals as officially poor.
Billions of people around the world live in poverty, and often experience hunger, preventable illness, and low life expectancy as a result.
Percentage of Population Living on Less than $1/day This map shows the percentage of national populations living on less than $1/day, adjusted for international purchasing power. This is a commonly used measure of poverty to allow international comparisons.
