5 Nigerians sink into extreme poverty every minute

Nigeria has overtaken India as the country with the largest number of people living in extreme poverty, according to the World Poverty Clock. The clock indicates some 86.9 million Nigerians currently live in extreme poverty. That’s 44 in every 100 Nigerians living on less than N600 a day. Poverty reduction rate to achieve the Sustainable […]

Nigeria has overtaken India as the country with the largest number of people living in extreme poverty, according to the World Poverty Clock.

The clock indicates some 86.9 million Nigerians currently live in extreme poverty. That’s 44 in every 100 Nigerians living on less than N600 a day.

Poverty reduction rate to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals is targeted at getting 13 people every minute out of poverty, but the escape rate is currently negative—around five people sink into poverty every minute.

By contrast, India has 71 million people living on less than N600 a day. That’s five out of every 100 people of its 1.3 billion population.

Its poverty escape rate show almost 44 people get out of extreme poverty per minute.

The findings, based on a projection by the World Poverty Clock and compiled by Brookings Institute, show that more than 643 million people across the world live in extreme poverty.

Africans are said to account for two out of every three people living in extreme poverty.

By the end of 2018 in Africa as a whole, there will probably be about 3.2 million more people living in extreme poverty than there are today, the researchers write.

Despite being the largest oil producer in Africa, Nigeria has struggled to translate its resource wealth into rising living standards.

A slump in oil prices and a sharp fall in oil production saw the country’s economy slide into recession in 2016.

The researchers note that 14 out of 18 countries where poverty is rising are in Africa, adding that if current rates persist, 90% of the world’s poorest will be living on the continent by 2030.

Bangladesh and Indonesia are the only other non-African nations to feature among the list of 10 worst affected countries, with an estimated 17 million and 14.2 million people living in extreme poverty, respectively.

Other nations in Africa to feature on the list of 10 worst affected countries, include the Democratic Republic of Congo, with 60 million people; Ethiopia with 23.9 million people; Tanzania with 19.9 million.

Mozambique, with 17.8 million people; Kenya, with 14.7 million people; and Uganda, with 14.2 million.

Data compiled by the World Poverty Clock was drawn from both household surveys and new projections on country economic growth from the International Monetary Funds’ World Economic Outlook.

Researchers noted that between January 1, 2016 and July 2018, the world has seen about 83 million people escape extreme poverty, owing in part to the introduction of internationally agreed UN Sustainable Development Goals, intended to "end poverty" by 2030.