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Field Listing :: Population below poverty line

National estimates of the percentage of the population falling below the poverty line are based on surveys of sub-groups, with the results weighted by the number of people in each group. Definitions of poverty vary considerably among nations. For example, rich nations generally employ more generous standards of poverty than poor nations.

Country	Population below poverty line(%)


Afghanistan	36% (FY08/09)


Albania	12.5% (2008 est.)


Algeria	23% (2006 est.)


American Samoa	NA%


Andorra	NA (2008)


Angola	40.5% (2006 est.)


Anguilla	23% (2002)


Antigua and Barbuda	NA%


Argentina	30% note: data are based on private estimates (2010)


Armenia	26.5% (2006 est.)


Aruba	NA%


Australia	NA%


Austria	6% (2008)


Azerbaijan	11% (2009 est.)


Bahamas, The	9.3% (2004)


Bahrain	NA%


Bangladesh	40% (2010 est.)


Barbados	NA%


Belarus	27.1% (2003 est.)


Belgium	15.2% (2007 est.)


Belize	43% (2010 est.)


Benin	37.4% (2007 est.)


Bermuda	19% (2000)


Bhutan	23.2% (2008)


Bolivia	30.3% note: based on percent of population living on less than the international standard of $2/day (2009 est.)


Bosnia and Herzegovina	18.6% (2007 est.)


Botswana	30.3% (2003)


Brazil	26% (2008)


British Virgin Islands	NA%


Brunei	NA%


Bulgaria	21.8% (2008)


Burkina Faso	46.4% (2004)


Burma	32.7% (2007 est.)


Burundi	68% (2002 est.)


Cambodia	31% (2007 est.)


Cameroon	48% (2000 est.)


Canada	9.4% note: this figure is the Low Income Cut-Off (LICO), a calculation that results in higher figures than found in many comparable economies; Canada does not have an official poverty line (2008)


Cape Verde	30% (2000)


Cayman Islands	NA%


Central African Republic	NA%


Chad	80% (2001 est.)


Chile	11.5% (2009)


China	2.8% note: 21.5 million rural population live below the official "absolute poverty" line (approximately $90 per year); an additional 35.5 million rural population live above that level but below the official "low income" line (approximately $125 per year) (2007)


Colombia	45.5% (2009)


Comoros	60% (2002 est.)


Congo, Democratic Republic of the	71% (2006 est.)


Congo, Republic of the	NA%


Cook Islands	NA%


Costa Rica	16% (2006 est.)


Cote d'Ivoire	42% (2006 est.)


Croatia	17% (2008)


Cuba	NA%


Cyprus	NA%


Czech Republic	NA%


Denmark	12.1% (2007)


Djibouti	42% (2007 est.)


Dominica	30% (2002 est.)


Dominican Republic	42.2% (2004)


Ecuador	33.1% (June 2010)


Egypt	20% (2005 est.)


El Salvador	37.8% (2009 est.)


Equatorial Guinea	NA%


Eritrea	50% (2004 est.)


Estonia	19.7% (2008)


Ethiopia	38.7% (FY05/06 est.)


European Union	note - see individual country entries of member states


Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas)	NA%


Faroe Islands	NA%


Fiji	25.5% (FY90/91)


Finland	NA%


France	6.2% (2004)


French Polynesia	NA%


Gabon	NA%


Gambia, The	NA%


Gaza Strip	70% (2009 est.)


Georgia	31% (2006)


Germany	15.5% (2010 est.)


Ghana	28.5% (2007 est.)


Gibraltar	NA%


Greece	20% (2009 est.)


Greenland	9.2% (2007 est.)


Grenada	32% (2000)


Guam	23% (2001 est.)


Guatemala	56.2% (2004 est.)


Guernsey	NA%


Guinea	47% (2006 est.)


Guinea-Bissau	NA%


Guyana	NA%


Haiti	80% (2003 est.)


Holy See (Vatican City)	NA%


Honduras	65% (2010)


Hong Kong	NA%


Hungary	13.9% (2010)


Iceland	NA%


India	25% (2007 est.)


Indonesia	13.33% (2010)


Iran	18% (2007 est.)


Iraq	25% (2008 est.)


Ireland	5.5% (2009 est.)


Isle of Man	NA%


Israel	23.6% note: Israel's poverty line is $7.30 per person per day (2007)


Italy	NA%


Jamaica	16.5% (2009 est.)


Japan	15.7% (2007) note: Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW) press release, 20 October 2009


Jersey	NA%


Jordan	14.2% (2002)


Kazakhstan	8.2% (2009)


Kenya	50% (2000 est.)


Kiribati	NA%


Korea, North	NA%


Korea, South	15% (2006 est.)


Kosovo	30% (2010 est.)


Kuwait	NA%


Kyrgyzstan	40% (2004 est.)


Laos	26% (2010 est.)


Latvia	NA%


Lebanon	28% (1999 est.)


Lesotho	49% (1999)


Liberia	80% (2000 est.)


Libya	NA note: About one-third of Libyans live at or below the national poverty line


Liechtenstein	NA%


Lithuania	4% (2003)


Luxembourg	NA%


Macau	NA%


Macedonia	28.7% (2008)


Madagascar	50% (2004 est.)


Malawi	53% (2004)


Malaysia	3.6% (2007 est.)


Maldives	16% (2008)


Mali	36.1% (2005 est.)


Malta	NA%


Marshall Islands	NA%


Mauritania	40% (2004 est.)


Mauritius	8% (2006 est.)


Mexico	18.2% note: based on food-based definition of poverty; asset based poverty amounted to more than 47% (2008)


Micronesia, Federated States of	26.7% (2000)


Moldova	26.3% (2009)


Monaco	NA%


Mongolia	36.1% (2004)


Montenegro	7% (2007 est.)


Montserrat	NA%


Morocco	15% (2007 est.)


Mozambique	70% (2001 est.)


Namibia	55.8% note: the UNDP's 2005 Human Development Report indicated that 34.9% of the population live on $1 per day and 55.8% live on $2 per day (2005 est.)


Nauru	NA%


Nepal	24.7% (2008)


Netherlands	10.5% (2005)


New Caledonia	NA%


New Zealand	NA%


Nicaragua	48% (2005)


Niger	63% (1993 est.)


Nigeria	70% (2007 est.)


Niue	NA%


Northern Mariana Islands	NA%


Norway	NA%


Oman	NA%


Pakistan	24% (FY05/06 est.)


Palau	NA%


Panama	25.6% (2010 est.)


Papua New Guinea	37% (2002 est.)


Paraguay	18.8% (2009 est.)


Peru	34.8% (2009)


Philippines	32.9% (2006 est.)


Poland	17% (2003 est.)


Portugal	18% (2006)


Puerto Rico	NA%


Qatar	NA%


Romania	25% (2005 est.)


Russia	13.1% (2009)


Rwanda	60% (2001 est.)


Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha	NA%


Saint Kitts and Nevis	NA%


Saint Lucia	NA%


Saint Pierre and Miquelon	NA%


Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	NA%


Samoa	NA%


San Marino	NA%


Sao Tome and Principe	54% (2004 est.)


Saudi Arabia	NA%


Senegal	54% (2001 est.)


Serbia	8.8% (2010 est.)


Seychelles	NA%


Sierra Leone	70.2% (2004)


Singapore	NA%


Slovakia	21% (2002)


Slovenia	12.3% (2008)


Solomon Islands	NA%


Somalia	NA%


South Africa	50% (2000 est.)


Spain	19.8% (2005)


Sri Lanka	23% (2008 est.)


Sudan	40% (2004 est.)


Suriname	70% (2002 est.)


Swaziland	69% (2006)


Sweden	NA%


Switzerland	6.9% (2010)


Syria	11.9% (2006 est.)


Taiwan	1.16% (2010 est.)


Tajikistan	53% (2009 est.)


Tanzania	36% (2002 est.)


Thailand	9.6% (2006 est.)


Timor-Leste	42% (2003 est.)


Togo	32% (1989 est.)


Tokelau	NA%


Tonga	24% (FY03/04)


Trinidad and Tobago	17% (2007 est.)


Tunisia	3.8% (2005 est.)


Turkey	17.11% (2008)


Turkmenistan	30% (2004 est.)


Turks and Caicos Islands	NA%


Tuvalu	NA%


Uganda	35% (2001 est.)


Ukraine	35% (2009)


United Arab Emirates	19.5% (2003)


United Kingdom	14% (2006 est.)


United States	12% (2004 est.)


Uruguay	20.9% of households (2009)


Uzbekistan	26% (2008 est.)


Vanuatu	NA%


Venezuela	37.9% (2005 est.)


Vietnam	10.6% (2010 est.)


Virgin Islands	28.9% (2002)


Wallis and Futuna	NA%


West Bank	46% (2007 est.)


Western Sahara	NA%


Yemen	45.2% (2003)


Zambia	64% (2006)


Zimbabwe	68% (2004)

The online Factbook is updated weekly. ISSN 1553-8133
For additional information on government leaders in selected foreign countries, go to World Leaders.