Excerpt from devpolicy.org
“Overcoming poverty is not a gesture of charity. It is an act of justice. It is the protection of a fundamental human right, the right to dignity and a decent life.”
Nelson Mandela’s powerful words resonate deeply and underscore the significance of a historic achievement we’re thrilled to share from Kiribati.
Last month, the Poverty and Inequality in Kiribati report was released, based on our latest Household Income and Expenditure Survey (HIES) results. It revealed something truly remarkable: over 19,000 I-Kiribati citizens have been lifted out of poverty. This monumental effort has seen our national poverty rate plummet by nearly 75% and extreme poverty effectively eliminated across our islands.
This isn’t the arbitrary luck of campaign promises. It’s the result of faith, determination and extremely hard work. Despite facing the immense challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic and global economic turbulence, Kiribati is delivering on key priorities outlined in its 20-year Vision. We set out to grow economic wealth and leave no one behind, and these results demonstrate solid headway against the challenges of poverty and economic inequality.
So, what defines poverty? Globally, extreme poverty is benchmarked by the World Bank’s international poverty line: living on less than US$2.15 per person per day, a threshold indicating that basic survival needs cannot be met. (The new international poverty line has since been updated to US$3.00 per person per day, but the US$2.15 per person line was in place at the time the HIES analysis was completed.)
Now, what does this really mean in Kiribati? It demonstrates a fundamental shift in people’s lives. It means fewer children are going hungry or missing school. It means more families have access to clean water, electricity and transport. Most profoundly, it means that more I-Kiribati, wherever they live, have the vital resources to live with dignity.