The world’s population living in extreme poverty, which has been increasing since 1820 in absolute terms (not percentage), is beginning to decline, even as the total world population continues to grow, and by a significant amount. The world’s population living in extreme poverty, after peaking at 2 billion people in 1970, will decline almost steadily, reaching 700 million people in the first decades of the 21st century. Over the same period, the total world population will increase from 4 to 8 billion.
