The World Bank's recent report, "Poverty, Prosperity, and Planet," highlights the slow progress in reducing global poverty. It reveals that at the current pace, it may take over a century to lift nearly half of the world's population above the $6.85 daily poverty threshold. The report marks the first comprehensive post-pandemic evaluation of efforts to eradicate poverty and promote shared prosperity on a sustainable planet.
Efforts to eliminate extreme poverty, defined as living on less than $2.15 per day, are also lagging. The target to end extreme poverty by 2030 seems unattainable, with projections suggesting it could take over 30 years. Currently, almost 700 million people live in extreme poverty, mostly in regions like Sub-Saharan Africa where economic growth has been historically low.
Axel van Trotsenburg, Senior Managing Director at the World Bank, emphasized the setbacks faced globally due to various challenges including economic stagnation and climate-related issues. He stated: “After decades of progress, the world is experiencing serious setbacks in the fight against global poverty."
Indermit Gill from the World Bank Group noted that countries must recognize trade-offs among developmental objectives while also identifying synergies such as those between reducing air pollution and achieving climate goals. Gill remarked: “Low-income countries and emerging market economies will do well to acknowledge the inevitability of tradeoffs among these objectives."
The report underscores stalled progress in closing what is termed as the Global Prosperity Gap since COVID-19 began affecting inclusive income growth worldwide. Despite a decrease in high-income inequality economies over ten years, around 1.7 billion people still reside within them.
The analysis indicates that future strategies should aim for economic growth with lower carbon emissions intensity than before. Reducing extreme poverty won't significantly impact global emissions due to minimal contributions from poorer nations; however, elevating standards could lead to higher emissions unless managed carefully.
Recommendations include prioritizing job creation and human capital investments for low-income countries while focusing on reducing carbon intensity for middle-income ones. High-income nations should cut emissions while mitigating short-term socio-economic impacts.
Strengthening international cooperation remains crucial alongside increased development financing towards more sustainable economic models.