Nepal Multidimensional Poverty Index 2021: Report
Analysis towards action
Highlights
Nepal has made substantive progress in reducing the Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) from 30.1 percent (NMICS 2014) to 17.4 (2019 NMICS) percent over the timeframe of five years. This latest MPI Report reaffirms that Nepal is heading in the right direction in its commitment to Agenda 2030 and in attaining its aspiration of ‘Prosperous Nepal - Happy Nepali’. In 2019, 17.4 percent of Nepalis are multidimensionally poor – just under five million persons, and the MPI is 0.074. Across indicators, the highest number of people are deprived in housing materials, clean cooking fuel, years of schooling, assets, and nutrition. Considering the indicator weights, years of schooling and nutritional deprivations contribute most to ongoing multidimensional poverty in Nepal.
In a global comparison, Nepal’s 2019 MPI value of 0.074 is below Bangladesh’s 2019 MPI of 0.104, which is also computed from a NMICS survey, and is lower than the MPI values for all South Asian countries except the Maldives. Nepal’s MPI matches the MPI of Botswana (2015-16), which is among the least poor countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, is similar to that of Nicaragua (2011-12) in Latin America, and just a little less poor than Kiribati (2018-19 NMICS) in East Asia and Pacific region.
The MPI Report 2021 is jointly developed by Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI) and Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), Nepal with the financial contribution from UNICEF and UNDP Nepal. The report is based on the Nepal Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey Report (NMICS) 2019 and covers a subset of priorities articulated in the current 15th Plan, Sustainable Development Goals: Status and Roadmap 2016-2030 Report and Constitution of Nepal 2015.
