World Bank predicts coronavirus will push between 40 million and 60 million people into poverty

The World Bank is predicting a rise in global poverty in 2020 as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. If that holds true, it will be the first increase since 1998, Politico reports.

The international financial institution's economists believe the pandemic will push somewhere between 40 million and 60 million people into poverty, adding to the global rate, defined here as the percentage of the world's population living on less than $1.90 per day. The World Bank's "best estimate" is an increase of 49 million people. Sub-Saharan Africa is expected to be the region most affected.

Since 1998, the world has made relative progress in reducing the number of people who live in poverty, but the pandemic could wind up setting the trend back three years. "In the most pessimistic scenarios, global poverty in 2020 would be close to the level of 2017," the authors of a post on the World Bank's Data Blog wrote.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Before the pandemic, a decline in global poverty from 8.1 percent to 7.8 percent was projected for the year. Read more at Politico.