The United Nations (UN)’s International Day for the Eradication of Poverty is annually observed across the globe on October 17 to highlight the issues of poverty, hunger, and violence.
- The day is to raise awareness about the global issue of poverty and how it is a violation of human rights and human dignity.
- 2022 marks the 35th anniversary of the World Day to Overcome Extreme Poverty and the 30th anniversary of the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty.
The theme of International Day for the Eradication of Poverty 2022 is “Dignity For All in Practice”.
- “Dignity” is not an abstract concept, it belongs to each and every one. Many people who live in never-ending poverty are continuously denied their dignity and are continually disrespected.
Background:
i. The International Day for the Eradication of Poverty was 1st observed on 17th October 1987. More than a hundred thousand people gathered at the Trocadéro in Paris, France, where the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was signed in 1948.
- It was declared that poverty is a violation of a person’s human rights and affirmed the need to come together and ensure that these rights are respected.
ii. The UN General Assembly (UNGA) adopted a resolution A/RES/47/196 on 22nd December 1992 and declared October 17 of every year as International Day for the Eradication of Poverty.
United Nations Decade for the Eradication of Poverty:
i. First United Nations Decade for the eradication of poverty (1997-2006)
ii. Second United Nations Decade for the Eradication of Poverty (2008-2017)
iii. Third United Nations Decade for the Eradication of Poverty (2018-2027)
- The Third United Nations Decade for the Eradication of Poverty (2018-2027) was adopted by the UNGA (A/RES/72/233) on 20th December 2017 and its theme is “Accelerating global actions for a world without poverty”.
Key Points:
i. The theme ‘Dignity for all in practice’ highlights the critical aspect of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
ii. The 1.3 billion people who are living in multidimensional poverty, face income and food insecurity and are extreme which is found in the informal economy.
Poverty:
i. The COVID-19 pandemic is likely to have pushed between 143 and 163 million people into poverty in 2021.
ii. According to the UN World Food Programme (WFP), 811 million people do not have enough food and 44 million are at risk of sliding into famine.
iii. According to World Health Organization (WHO) and United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), 2 billion people still live without safe drinking water and 3.6 billion without safely managed sanitation.
Poverty Percentage in India:
i. According to Global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) reports for 2019 & 2020, 21.9% (269.8 million) of the population was poor in India.
ii. According to World Poverty Clock in 2022, roughly 6% (83 million) of the population are living in poverty.
Sustainable Development Goals:
i. ‘End poverty in all its forms everywhere’ is the 1st Sustainable Development Goal which mainly targets eradicating extreme poverty for all people everywhere by 2030.
ii. According to the UN, more than 700 million people (10%) of the world’s population, still live in extreme poverty.
About the United Nations (UN):
Secretary-General- António Guterres
Member states- 193
Headquarters- New York, United States of America (USA)
Establishment- 1945
