International Day for the Eradication of Poverty

  The 2026 global Multidimensional Poverty Index  published by the UNDP and OPHI reports the 1st rise in the number of people living in Multidimensional Poverty since 2010. Yet, 33 countries have halved their MPI value in fewer than 15 years showing that progress is possible.   The 2026 Global Multidimensional Poverty Index  reports that 1.2 billion people (18.9% of the population) live in acute multidimensional poverty across 108 developing countries. This year's report delivers a wake-up call: for the first time since the Global MPI was launched in 2010, the number of people living in multidimensional poverty has increased. Yet it also shows that rapid progress remains possible when countries tackle deprivations in health, education, and living standards together.  Read the full report and follow the conversations with the hashtags:  #EndPoverty , #LeaveNoOneBehind ,  #GlobalMPI

The finding comes in the 2026 update of the global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) published by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Oxford University, which measures overlapping hardship across health, education and standard of living. The 1.2 billion figure represents 51.5 million more people than in the 2025 update. Of this number, more than half are children – 617 million – and 83 per cent live in rural areas .  ‘This is unacceptable’   “The rise in poverty should be a wake-up call for the world,” said UNDP Administrator Alexander De Croo. “Behind these figures are 1.2 billion people facing hardships that reinforce one another: hunger, missed schooling and a lack of clean water or electricity. This is unacceptable.” The index was developed in 2010 to measure poverty beyond what people earn. Overlapping deprivations   It examines 10 indicators of health, education and standard of living, such as nutrition and child mortality, years of schooling,...

The Doha Political Declaration (paragraph 13) reaffirms the right to an adequate standard of living, including safe,accessible, and affordable housing, drinking water, and equitable sanitation .  States have binding obligations under international law — human rights are not aspirations but enforceable commitments. In implementing the Doha Political Plan of Action , we call on governments to:  1. Meet their human rights obligations to ensure they respect, protect, and progressively fulfil the right to safe homes for all, and ensure that the realisation of a dignified life for all takes first priority in policy decisions and budget choices.  2. Address power imbalances and move from tokenistic participation to inclusive deliberation. This means codesigning housing policies with people experiencing poverty and exclusion, recognising them as rightsholders and knowledge-holders who are indispensable to democratic life.  3. Expand public fiscal space and deploy these reso...

 More than 2.8 billion people face some form of housing inadequacy — including 1.1 billion in informal settlements ( UN-Habitat ) and at least 330 million experiencing absolute homelessness ( Institute of Global Homelessness ).  This burden falls most heavily on those already excluded: people on low incomes, women, children, older persons, persons with disabilities, migrants, refugees, and racial and ethnic minorities. Homelessness and inadequate housing show how quickly people lose access to basic rights when housing becomes unaffordable or inaccessible. Without a secure home, it becomes nearly impossible to exercise other rights or participate fully in society. Housing systems increasingly exclude people in poverty. When land and homes are treated as investment assets rather than social goods, people are pushed into unsafe, overcrowded, or precarious conditions — not by choice, but by the failure of housing systems to serve human needs. Homelessness and inadequate housi...

October 17 — the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty (IDEP) — is a powerful global platform to affirm the indivisibility of human rights. The 2026–2028 umbrella theme, United for Peace and Human Rights , responds to a world marked by rising armed conflict and persisting institutional violence against people in poverty. Peace requires justice, social protection, and democratic participation — not merely the absence of war. Related Sites and Documents:  Concept Note . Watch the commemoration of the nternational Day for the Eradication of Poverty! 01:14:01 Meetings & Events

The International Day for the Eradication of Poverty is officially observed each year on 17 October . This year, the United Nations commemoration will take place on Friday, 16 October 2026, bringing together people with lived experience of poverty, Member States, civil society and other stakeholders. Under the 2026–2028 theme “ United for Peace and Human Rights ,” this year’s observance highlights the close connections between poverty, human rights and peace. The theme recognizes that peace requires more than the absence of conflict. It also requires justice, social protection, meaningful participation and respect for human dignity and human rights. The 2026 focus, “ Safe Homes for All ,” draws attention to adequate housing as a foundation for a life of dignity. More than 2.8 billion people worldwide face some form of housing inadequacy, with the greatest burden falling on people already experiencing poverty and exclusion. The commemoration will amplify the voices and lived experienc...