Number of people living in extreme poverty: September 2024 data vs. latest data in Malawi

Malawi: Number of people living in extreme poverty: September 2024 data vs. latest data was 14.47 million people in 2019. ▲ Rising

Latest (2019)
14.47 million people
Change on year
up 14.1%
World rank
11th
of 120 countries
All-time high
14.47 million people
in 2019
All-time low
6.94 million people
in 1997
Years of data
5
1997–2019

Number of people living in extreme poverty: September 2024 data vs. latest data in Malawi, 1997–2019

05.0M10.0M15.0M1997200820191997: 6.9M people2004: 9.4M people2010: 10.9M people2016: 12.7M people2019: 14.5M people

Source: World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in people.

Analysis

The most recent figure for number of people living in extreme poverty: september 2024 data vs. latest data in Malawi is 14.47 million people, measured in 2019. That is the highest value across all 5 years on record.

The figure is up 14.1% on the previous year and up 33.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, number of people living in extreme poverty: september 2024 data vs. latest data in Malawi peaked at 14.47 million people in 2019 and was at its lowest, 6.94 million people, in 1997.

Malawi ranks 11th of 120 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 6.94 million people 6.94 million people 6.94 million people 1
2000s 9.36 million people 9.36 million people 9.36 million people 1
2010s 12.68 million people 10.88 million people 14.47 million people 3

Countries ranked near Malawi

  1. 8 Kenya 25.01 million people compare
  2. 9 Madagascar 20.93 million people compare
  3. 10 Niger 15.07 million people compare
  4. 12 Zambia 14.44 million people compare
  5. 13 Philippines 13.25 million people compare
  6. 14 Ghana 11.65 million people compare

See the full ranking of 120 places →

More poverty & inequality data for Malawi

All data for Malawi →

Frequently asked questions

What is number of people living in extreme poverty: september 2024 data vs. latest data in Malawi?
Number of people living in extreme poverty: september 2024 data vs. latest data in Malawi was 14.47 million people in 2019, according to World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest number of people living in extreme poverty: september 2024 data vs. latest data recorded in Malawi?
The highest recorded value was 14.47 million people in 2019.
What is the lowest number of people living in extreme poverty: september 2024 data vs. latest data recorded in Malawi?
The lowest recorded value was 6.94 million people in 1997.
How does Malawi rank for number of people living in extreme poverty: september 2024 data vs. latest data?
Malawi ranks 11th out of 120 countries with data for 2019.
Is number of people living in extreme poverty: september 2024 data vs. latest data rising or falling in Malawi?
Over the last ten years it is up 33.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Malawi data come from?
The figures come from World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Number of people living in extreme poverty: September 2024 data vs. latest data. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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About this data

Indicator
Number of people living in extreme poverty: September 2024 data vs. latest data
Unit
people
Source
World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
120 places, 2,148 data points, 1963–2025
Last refreshed

Number of people living in households with an income or consumption below $3 per day.