Although the share of people living in extreme poverty in 1990 was halved by 2010, progress will have to accelerate considerably to halve the prevalence of under-nutrition by 2015. Meanwhile, despite declining expatriate employment and incomes in the last half-decade, remittances have helped to fight poverty, reduce hunger, improve diets, and increase agricultural investment.
Světová banka původně definovala práh extrémní chudoby („dolar na den“) především jako cenu takového množství potravin, jaké zabrání hladu.