The global goal of eradicating extreme poverty, defined as living on $2.15 per person per day, by 2030 remains a formidable challenge, increasingly threatened by the growing impacts of climate change experts are saying.
According to the World Bank, nearly 700 million people, approximately 8.5 percent of the global population—are currently living in extreme poverty, surviving on less than $2.15 per day.
Around 3.5 billion people, or 44 percent of the global population, are living below the $6.85 per day poverty threshold, often reflecting conditions in upper-middle-income countries, the bank said.
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Recent climate disasters, including earthquakes in Thailand, floods in Nigeria, heatwaves in India, and droughts in Morocco, demonstrate how climate change exacerbates poverty.
In Nigeria alone, floods in October 2024 affected 9.2 million people, submerging vast areas of farmland and causing production losses in staple crops like maize and rice, potentially costing nearly $1 billion according to Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
With 92 million Nigerians suffering from protein deficiency, the country’s multidimensional poverty rate stands at 63 percent largely linked to climate disruptions.
Latest WorldBank reports highlight that climate change is exacerbating global poverty, with one in five individuals facing the threat of extreme weather events in their lifetime.
These events have the potential to devastate livelihoods and hinder efforts to combat poverty, especially as the risks tied to climate hazards continue to rise unless decisive actions are taken to both reduce greenhouse gas emissions and bolster resilience, WorldBank stated.
While significant progress has been made globally, the number of people living below this threshold has largely remained stagnant since the 1990s, primarily due to population growth.
Sub-Saharan Africa, home to 16 percent of the world’s population, is disproportionately affected, accounting for 67 percent of the world’s extreme poor according to WorldBank reports.
In fragile and conflict-affected nations, this share increases to 75 percent. Furthermore, 72 percent of the world’s extreme poor reside in countries eligible for assistance from the International Development Association (IDA).
Projections from the World Bank indicate that by 2030, 622 million people—7.3 percent of the global population—will still be living in extreme poverty under current trends.
While this reflects a modest decline, with 69 million people expected to escape extreme poverty between 2024 and 2030, the pace is much slower than the 150 million who managed to escape between 2013 and 2019.
Moreover, nearly 3.4 billion people, or 40 percent of the global population, will continue to live below the $6.85 per day threshold.
The World Bank emphasizes that without a significant acceleration in inclusive growth, eradicating extreme poverty could take decades, and lifting people above the $6.85 per day threshold may take over a century.
Inequality remains a major barrier to progress, limiting opportunities for socioeconomic mobility and hindering long-term inclusive growth.
At present, one-fifth of the global population lives in countries with high inequality, primarily in Sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America and the Caribbean.
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Solutions
André Aranha Corrêa do Lago, President-designate of the 2025 UN Climate Change Conference (COP30), underscores the urgent need to dramatically scale up climate finance for developing and low-income countries, calling for a minimum of $1.3 trillion annually through both public and private sectors by 2035.
He stresses that this investment is crucial for alleviating the financial burden on low-income nations, which currently spend 5-10 percent of their annual budgets addressing the worsening effects of the climate crisis.
The World Bank also highlights the importance of improving data collection through household surveys to better address the climate crisis and narrow the poverty gap.
Strengthening international collaboration and closing financing gaps for sustainable development are essential to support the transition to low-carbon, resilient economies. While a world free from poverty and a livable planet is achievable, it will require urgent, concerted action and unwavering dedication to drive transformative change.
