2025 Global Multidimensional Poverty Index Released

The “2025 Global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI)”, released by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI) at the University of Oxford, highlights the deep interlinkages between poverty and climate vulnerability. The report, titled “Overlapping Hardships: Poverty and Climate Hazards”, was launched ahead of the upcoming COP30 Climate Summit in Brazil.

Climate Crisis Reshaping Global Poverty
The report finds that more than 80% of the world’s multidimensionally poor live in regions exposed to climate hazards, revealing how the climate crisis is intensifying global inequalities. For the first time, the Index has mapped the exposure of the poor to four major climate hazards — high heat, drought, floods, and air pollution.

Key Findings of the 2025 MPI

• Of the 1.1 billion multidimensionally poor people globally, 887 million live in regions exposed to at least one of the four climate hazards.
• 608 million people are exposed to high heat, 577 million to air pollution, 465 million to floods, and 207 million to drought.
• South Asia has the highest concentration of multidimensionally poor people living in climate-affected regions.
• In South Asia, 99.1% of poor people are exposed to one or more climate shocks — making the region the most vulnerable globally.

India’s Progress in Poverty Reduction
The report also underscores India’s remarkable progress in reducing multidimensional poverty over the last two decades.

• In 2005–2006, 55.1% of India’s population was poor.
• By 2019–2021, this figure had fallen to 16.4%, meaning around 414 million people moved out of multidimensional poverty.

Understanding the MPI
The Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) assesses poverty beyond income levels by measuring deprivations across three key dimensions:

1. Health
2. Education
3. Standard of Living

Each dimension comprises a set of indicators reflecting access to basic needs such as nutrition, schooling, electricity, sanitation, and housing.

Global Significance
The 2025 MPI underscores the urgent need for integrated policies that simultaneously address poverty alleviation and climate resilience. It calls for climate-informed poverty reduction strategies to ensure that progress toward sustainable development is equitable and enduring.

(Source: UNDP MPI)