{"id":2272,"date":"2026-10-07T15:03:49","date_gmt":"2026-10-07T10:03:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/?p=2272"},"modified":"2026-10-07T15:03:49","modified_gmt":"2026-10-07T10:03:49","slug":"world-bank-pakistan-accounts-for-48-of-menaaps-extreme-poor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/?p=2272","title":{"rendered":"World Bank: Pakistan accounts for 48% of MENAAP\u2019s extreme poor"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Pakistan accounts for nearly 48% of people living in extreme poverty across the Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan and Pakistan (MENAAP) region, with the country\u2019s poverty rate rising sharply over the past six years, the World Bank said in its latest economic update.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The World Bank\u2019s October 2026 MENAAP Economic Update said Pakistan\u2019s poverty rate at the $3-a-day threshold increased by 6.4 percentage points between 2018-19 and 2024-25, while poverty measured at the $4.20-a-day threshold rose by 3.2 percentage points.<\/p>\n

The increase followed a series of shocks, including the Covid-19 pandemic, the devastating 2022 floods, high inflation, currency depreciation and prolonged economic adjustment, which weakened household incomes and employment opportunities.<\/p>\n

The deterioration in Pakistan has contributed significantly to rising poverty across MENAAP, which the World Bank said is now the only region in the world where poverty remains above pre-pandemic levels and continues to rise.<\/p>\n

Pakistan alone accounts for about 48% of the region\u2019s population living on less than $3 a day, while Afghanistan, Syria and Yemen account for another 47%.<\/p>\n

Together, the four countries make up about 95% of MENAAP\u2019s extreme poor.<\/p>\n

In 2024, 14.3% of MENAAP\u2019s population lived on less than $3 a day, compared with 10.4% globally.<\/p>\n

At the $4.20 threshold, 26.9% of the region\u2019s population was living in poverty, against 18.9% worldwide.<\/p>\n

The World Bank said poverty reduction in MENAAP had already slowed around 2019 before reversing after the Covid-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n

It expects adverse poverty trends to persist through 2026, with poverty increasingly concentrated in fragile and conflict-affected economies.<\/p>\n

Pakistan\u2019s worsening poverty situation comes despite a gradual recovery in economic growth.<\/p>\n

The World Bank estimated GDP growth at 3.7% in fiscal year 2025-26, up from 3.2% in 2024-25, and projected growth of 3.8% for 2026-27.<\/p>\n

However, gains in per capita income remain modest, while inflation and rising energy costs continue to put pressure on household purchasing power.<\/p>\n

Inflation in Pakistan had risen to around 11% by mid-2026 as higher international energy, commodity and transport costs fed into the domestic economy, the report said.<\/p>\n

Petrol and diesel prices have risen by more than 40% since the start of the Gulf conflict, adding to living costs and increasing the vulnerability of lower-income households.<\/p>\n

The World Bank also identified Pakistan among countries facing significant food insecurity.<\/p>\n

It said poorer households were particularly vulnerable to food inflation, as low-income households in developing MENAAP economies typically spend 35% to 50% of their total expenditure on food.<\/p>\n

The bank said targeted cash transfers and well-designed social assistance were generally more effective than broad fuel and food subsidies in protecting vulnerable households while limiting pressure on public finances.<\/p>\n

It noted that Pakistan had already introduced targeted fuel and farm assistance in response to the latest increase in energy prices, adding that such measures could help protect poorer households while preserving fiscal space amid debt and financing constraints.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Pakistan accounts for nearly 48% of people living in extreme poverty across the Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan and Pakistan (MENAAP) region, with the country\u2019s poverty rate rising sharply over the past six years, the World Bank said in its latest economic update. The World Bank\u2019s October 2026 MENAAP Economic Update said Pakistan\u2019s poverty rate at the $3-a-day threshold increased by 6.4 percentage points between 2018-19 and 2024-25, while poverty measured at the $4.20-a-day threshold rose by 3.2 percentage points. The increase followed a series of shocks, including the Covid-19…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2272","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-english"],"gutentor_comment":0,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2272","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2272"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2272\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2272"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2272"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2272"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}