Pakistan has a higher multidimensional poverty rate than India and Bangladesh, with 38.3% of its population experiencing overlapping disadvantages in health, education and living standards, according to the latest Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) released by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The figures, released in New York, highlight the challenges facing Pakistan in improving access to essential services and addressing deprivation across different segments of society. The report estimates that 16.4% of India’s population and 14.9% of Bangladesh’s population live in multidimensional poverty. However, the estimates are based on household surveys conducted in different years, meaning they do not represent a strictly comparable picture of poverty across the three countries at the same point in time.
The UNDP report also highlights the intensity of deprivation among Pakistanis classified as multidimensionally poor. In Pakistan, the intensity of deprivation stood at 51.7%, indicating that affected people experience multiple disadvantages simultaneously. In addition, 12.9% of the country’s population was considered vulnerable to multidimensional poverty, placing a significant proportion of people at risk of falling into acute deprivation. These findings demonstrate that poverty extends beyond the ability of households to earn enough money, encompassing broader challenges that affect access to basic services, opportunities and acceptable living conditions. The figures also point to the need for policies that address interconnected disadvantages rather than focusing exclusively on household income.
Unlike conventional poverty measurements that primarily assess income or expenditure, the Multidimensional Poverty Index examines several indicators covering health, education and living standards. These include nutrition, child mortality, years of schooling, school attendance, sanitation, drinking water, electricity, housing and household assets. By examining these factors together, the index identifies households facing multiple forms of deprivation that may not be fully reflected in income-based statistics. For Pakistan, the findings indicate that a considerable share of the population continues to face challenges across essential areas of daily life. Limited access to adequate nutrition, education, clean water, sanitation and electricity can affect household welfare and restrict opportunities for children and adults to improve their economic circumstances.
Beyond Pakistan’s national figures, the report identifies a concerning global reversal in poverty reduction. The number of people living in multidimensional poverty has increased for the first time in 15 years, reaching approximately 1.2 billion worldwide. The latest estimate is 51.5 million higher than the previous update, highlighting the growing difficulty many households face in meeting basic needs. Children account for more than half of the people affected, with approximately 617 million living in multidimensional poverty. The report also states that 83% of the world’s multidimensionally poor population lives in rural areas, underscoring the challenges faced by communities where essential services and infrastructure may be limited.
The global findings illustrate how poverty can involve several disadvantages that reinforce one another. Families experiencing inadequate nutrition may also struggle to maintain children’s school attendance, while a lack of electricity, safe drinking water and sanitation can create additional health and educational difficulties. These overlapping problems can restrict access to employment and other opportunities, making it harder for households to escape deprivation. For governments, addressing multidimensional poverty requires more than increasing incomes. It also involves improving public services, expanding access to education and healthcare, strengthening basic infrastructure and ensuring that disadvantaged communities can benefit from development programmes.
South Asia remains a major contributor to global deprivation, accounting for at least one-third of worldwide deprivations in nutrition, housing and years of schooling, according to the report. The region is also home to approximately 150 million poor people living in households where a school-aged child is not attending school. This highlights persistent barriers to education despite wider development gains across parts of the region. School attendance and educational attainment are important indicators within the MPI because limited access to education can affect future employment prospects, household income and the ability of individuals to improve their living conditions over time.
The UNDP’s regional figures place South Asia’s multidimensional poverty rate at approximately 19.3%, while another 18.4% of the population is considered vulnerable to such poverty. Living standards account for 36.3% of the contribution to multidimensional poverty in the region, followed by education at 33.7% and health at 29.9%. These figures demonstrate that deprivation in South Asia is linked to a combination of inadequate living conditions, educational disadvantages and health-related challenges. The relative contribution of each area also shows why poverty reduction strategies need to respond to the specific circumstances of affected communities instead of relying on a single policy measure.
The report’s findings underline the relationship between health, education and living standards in determining household welfare. Families with limited access to healthcare may face difficulties maintaining stable livelihoods, while inadequate schooling can reduce opportunities for better employment and higher earnings. Poor housing, unsafe drinking water and inadequate sanitation can further increase the burden on vulnerable households. These conditions can persist across generations when children grow up without sufficient access to the resources and services needed to improve their circumstances. Pakistan’s multidimensional poverty figures therefore highlight the importance of coordinated development efforts that address these disadvantages together.
UNDP Administrator Alexander De Croo described the increase in global poverty as a warning for the international community, stressing that millions of people continue to face hardships involving hunger, missed schooling and inadequate access to clean water and electricity. His remarks reflect the report’s central finding that poverty is not defined by income alone but by the combined disadvantages people experience in their daily lives. With 1.2 billion people worldwide classified as multidimensionally poor, the report calls attention to the scale of the challenge facing governments and development institutions. For Pakistan, the findings provide a broader picture of persistent deprivation and the importance of strengthening access to essential services, particularly for vulnerable households and rural communities.
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