Ghana has recorded steady progress in reducing multidimensional poverty, but more than 7 million people continue to live without access to basic needs such as decent housing, health insurance, quality sanitation and stable employment, the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) has revealed.
According to the 2024 Q1–2025 Q3 Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) Report, the national poverty rate declined to 21.9 per cent in the third quarter of 2025, down from 24.9 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2024 .
The report notes that this improvement represents a reduction of about one million people living in multidimensional poverty within a year.
“By Q3 2025, about 21.9% of Ghana’s population, representing a little over 7 million people, were multidimensionally poor, down from 24.9% or 8.2 million people in 2024 Q4,” the GSS stated .
Despite the national gains, the report paints a troubling picture of inequality, especially between rural and urban communities. Poverty remains more than twice as high in rural areas.
“Multidimensional poverty remains significantly higher in rural areas (31.9%) than in urban areas (14.2%),” the report said, attributing the gap to unequal access to services and economic opportunities .
At the regional level, the North East and Savannah Regions recorded poverty incidence above 50 per cent, while Greater Accra and Western Regions remained below 20 per cent, highlighting deep spatial disparities in living standards .
The GSS report identifies health insurance coverage as the single largest contributor to multidimensional poverty in Ghana.
“Health insurance coverage (26.5%) remains the strongest driver of multidimensional poverty,” the report revealed, followed by nutrition (14.4%) and employment deprivation (12.3%) in the third quarter of 2025 .
The Service stressed that lack of protection from health shocks continues to push households deeper into poverty, particularly among vulnerable groups.
While overall poverty declined, the report flags worrying trends that could threaten future progress. Overcrowding deprivation surged sharply, nearly doubling between the second and third quarters of 2025.
“Overcrowding deprivation nearly doubled, rising from 11.4% to 21.6% between Q2 and Q3 2025,” the report noted, pointing to growing housing pressure in both urban and peri-urban communities .
School attendance deprivation also increased during the same period, raising concerns about education retention and long-term poverty persistence.
The findings show that education and stable employment significantly reduce the likelihood of poverty. Households headed by persons with tertiary education recorded the lowest poverty rate of 5.7 per cent, compared with 38.5 per cent among those with no formal education .
Similarly, poverty was lowest among households headed by public sector workers (5.3%), while those headed by unemployed persons recorded the highest levels at 35.6 per cent.
The Ghana Statistical Service says the data points clearly to the need for targeted, evidence-based interventions.
“What these findings demand is not general responses, but practical, targeted solutions,” the report stressed, urging government to prioritise
NHIS expansion, improved sanitation and housing, education retention, and stable employment creation.
