Absolute poverty definition, examples, & vs relative poverty

1. According to the definition of the world bank (updated in September 2022), extreme poverty means, inability to earn $2.15 per day.  As an example of absolute poverty, 719 million people in the world (in other words, 9.2% of the world’s population) earn less than $2.15 a day. Among these people, women, children and youth accounts for a large portion.
2. Next best examples of absolute poverty is about 63% of people older than 15 who live in extreme poverty have no schooling or only some basic education.
3. According to sociological absolute poverty definition, absolute or extreme poverty means households do not have sufficient income to accept even basic standard of living. U.N. Development Programme report in 2022 has mentioned that 1.2 billion people who live in 111 developing countries suffer from the extreme poverty. Because they are not able to reach the basic standard of living. This is a best absolute poverty example in the world
4. When we consider country wise absolute poverty examples, absolute poverty will largely hold stable in Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Ethiopia is “indicative of the wider uneven progress globally.” Syria tops the list of countries with the highest proportion of people living below the poverty line, with an estimated 82.5%, according to the organization IndexMundi, which compiles statistics on national economies.  South America’s Suriname (70%), Central America’s Guatemala (59.3%), and the Caribbean island Haiti (58.5%) rank alongside various African nations in the top 20 list. 

Is homelessness an example of absolute poverty?

Yes of course. Because having a home is a basic need. Homelessness is one of the major extreme poverty problems that both developing and developed countries have faced. When a person is homeless, he or she almost not mentally feeling well. For example, statistics in the UK show that mental health illness among the homeless is as high as 80 percent.

Absolute poverty vs relative poverty

Thus both relative poverty and absolute poverty relate to the issues of global justice, but on two different levels. We can compare the difference between absolute (extreme) poverty and relative poverty.

1. Extreme poverty means households do not have sufficient income to accept even basic standard of living. In other words, inability to earn $2.15 per day. Relative poverty means situation of household income is below than a certain percentage of median income. As examples, relative poverty could be set at 50% of median incomes.
2. Extreme poverty means the inability to access basic human needs such as water and food to shelter, security, and so on. But relative poverty does not consider about the biological needs of the people. It compares the income of the people in environment.
3. Extreme poverty means households do not have sufficient income to accept even basic standard of living. Relative poverty sociology definition is the situation of people do not have income to maintain the average standard of living in the society in which they live.
4. People living in extreme poverty condition experience the worst living standards. People living in relative poverty enjoy fairly better living standards than those living in extreme poverty. However, they can still not enjoy the same living standards as others in the country.
5. Absolute poverty does not consider on the quality of life and income disparity of the country. This concept also fails to understand that people have important social and cultural needs. Relative poverty consider about the income disparity. People who suffer in relative poverty, cannot afford the same standard of life as other people in society.
6. Extreme poverty is measured by poverty line. Relative poverty is measured by the Gini-Coefficient and Lorenzo Curve.
7. In most cases, the extreme poverty line remains the same for years. Relative poverty levels change according to the change in the economic circumstances of a country.
8. 100% elimination of extreme poverty is possible. 100% elimination of relative poverty is not possible.

Difference between absolute poverty and relative poverty