Ghana made measurable progress in reducing multidimensional poverty between the third quarter of 2024 and the same period in 2025, according to the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS).
Data from the Multidimensional Poverty Report for Q1–Q3 2025 shows that 7.2 million people were multidimensionally poor in the third quarter of 2025, down from 8.1 million in Q3 2024. This means that about 950,000 Ghanaians moved out of multidimensional poverty within one year, the Government Statistician, Dr Alhassan Iddrisu, announced.
Multidimensional poverty goes beyond income levels and examines deprivation across key aspects of human well-being, including health, education and living conditions. The index is measured on a scale from 0 to 1, where 0 represents no deprivation and 1 indicates deprivation across all measured indicators.
Presenting the report on Wednesday, January 21, Dr Iddrisu said the national multidimensional poverty rate declined from 24.9 percent in the first quarter of 2025 to 21.9 percent by the third quarter, pointing to sustained improvement over the period.
Despite the overall progress, he cautioned that the gains have not been evenly shared across the country. Rural areas continue to record significantly higher poverty levels than urban centres, while some regions remain persistently deprived.
Dr Iddrisu identified health and living conditions as the main drivers of multidimensional poverty in Ghana. Key pressure points include low health insurance coverage, poor nutrition, overcrowded housing and inadequate sanitation, which continue to affect millions of households.
He stressed that addressing these structural challenges will be critical to sustaining and deepening Ghana’s progress in reducing poverty across all regions and communities.
