Nigeria’s multidimensional poverty rate rose to 38.7 per cent in 2024 from 33 per cent in 2021, with the number of people affected increasing by 17.9 million to 90.1 million, according to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
The figures are contained in the 2026 Global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) report, produced by the UNDP in collaboration with the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI) and released on Monday, October 12, 2026.
The report said Nigeria recorded the largest increase in the number of multidimensionally poor people among five countries that experienced rising poverty over their latest measurement periods.
Nigeria’s MPI value, which measures the incidence and intensity of deprivation, increased to 0.208 in 2024 from 0.175 in 2021, while the intensity of deprivation rose to 53.6 per cent from 52.9 per cent.
The increase reversed earlier progress, as the country’s multidimensional poverty rate declined from 42.3 per cent in 2013 to 33 per cent in 2021 before rising in 2024.
Unlike income-based measures, the global MPI assesses overlapping deprivations across health, education and living standards, including access to electricity, clean water, sanitation, housing and schooling.
The report also highlighted regional disparities in Nigeria, with multidimensional poverty incidence ranging from 3.7 per cent to 88.3 per cent across the areas covered by the analysis.
Globally, an estimated 1.2 billion people across 108 countries were living in acute multidimensional poverty, with sub-Saharan Africa accounting for 616 million, or 51.4 per cent of its population.
The report found that 83.3 per cent of the global multidimensionally poor population, or approximately 998 million people, live in rural areas, compared with 200 million in urban areas.
The incidence of multidimensional poverty stands at 28.7 per cent in rural areas, against 7 per cent in urban areas.
Children bear a disproportionate share of the global burden. Those below the age of 18 account for 617 million people, or 51.5 per cent, of the global multidimensionally poor population.
In sub-Saharan Africa, 355 million children live in multidimensional poverty, representing 57.7 per cent of the region’s poor population.
The UNDP estimates for Nigeria are based on household survey data collected in 2024 and do not represent a direct measurement of poverty in 2026.