World Bank’s Poverty and Equity Brief 2025

The World Bank’sSpring 2025 Poverty and Equity Briefacknowledged India’s success in lifting171 million peopleout of extreme poverty between 2011-12 and 2022-23.

Summary ofWorld Bank’s Poverty and Equity Brief:

Purpose:Published twice a year, these briefs track poverty, shared prosperity, and inequality trends in over 100 developing countries.

India’s Highlights:

oExtreme poverty(living under $2.15/day) declined from16.2% (2011-12)to2.3% (2022-23).

oLower-middle-income poverty(living under $3.65/day) fell from61.8% to 28.1%, lifting378 millionpeople.

oMultidimensional povertydeclined from53.8% (2005-06)to15.5% (2022-23).

oInequality reduction:Gini index improved from28.8to25.5.

oEmployment Growth:Urban unemployment dropped to6.6%, the lowest since 2017-18.

Factors Leading to Poverty Decline:

Welfare Schemes:Programmes like PMAY, MGNREGA, Ujjwala Yojana expanded safety nets (e.g., 11 crore households received LPG under Ujjwala).

Economic Reforms:GST, Ease of Doing Business reforms accelerated formal sector growth, boosting employment opportunities.

Access to Essentials:Initiatives like Ayushman Bharat andJan Dhan Yojanaimproved healthcare and financial inclusion.

Rural Development:Increased road connectivity under PMGSY and rural electrification enhanced rural income and access to markets.

Women Empowerment:Rise in rural female employment and SHG-based entrepreneurship expanded family incomes.

Analysis of Report:

Positives in Report:

oBroad-Based Gains:Both rural and urban poverty declined significantly, closing the rural-urban gap from7.7% to 1.7%.

oEmployment Upsurge:Female employment witnessed a notable rise; self-employment surged among rural women.

oInclusive Development:States like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra contributed heavily to national poverty reduction.

oInequality Reduction:Improved Gini index indicates wealth distribution becoming more equitable.

Negatives in Report:

oYouth Unemployment:Despite overall employment gains,13.3% youth unemploymentremains concerning, reaching29%among graduates.

oInformal Employment:Only23% of non-farm jobsare formal; agriculture still remains largely informal.

oGender Disparity:Despite improvements, women’s labour force participation remains at31%, highlighting persistent inequality.

oPoverty Pockets:Five populous states still account for54% of India’s extremely poorin 2022-23.