Poverty: Share of population living on less than $1 a day in Uganda

Uganda: Poverty: Share of population living on less than $1 a day was 6.6% in 2019. ▼ Falling

Latest (2019)
6.6%
Change on year
up 12.8%
World rank
7th
of 120 countries
All-time high
22.2%
in 1989
All-time low
5.1%
in 2012
Years of data
10
1989–2019

Poverty: Share of population living on less than $1 a day in Uganda, 1989–2019

51015201989200420191989: 22.2 %1992: 19.6 %1996: 16.8 %1999: 22.2 %2002: 19.3 %2005: 13.6 %2009: 7.7 %2012: 5.1 %2016: 5.9 %2019: 6.6 %

Source: World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

In 2019, poverty: share of population living on less than $1 a day in Uganda stood at 6.6%.

That represents a change of up 12.8% on the previous year and down 14.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, poverty: share of population living on less than $1 a day in Uganda peaked at 22.2% in 1989 and was at its lowest, 5.1%, in 2012.

That places Uganda 7th out of 120 countries with data for 2019, putting it in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 10 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 22.2% 22.2% 22.2% 1
1990s 19.6% 16.8% 22.2% 3
2000s 13.6% 7.7% 19.3% 3
2010s 5.8% 5.1% 6.6% 3

Countries ranked near Uganda

  1. 4 Burundi 11.4% compare
  2. 5 Madagascar 7.9% compare
  3. 6 Ghana 6.8% compare
  4. 8 Venezuela 3.1% compare
  5. 9 Honduras 2.6% compare
  6. 10 Nigeria 2.0% compare

See the full ranking of 120 places →

More reference data data for Uganda

All data for Uganda →

Frequently asked questions

What is poverty: share of population living on less than $1 a day in Uganda?
Poverty: share of population living on less than $1 a day in Uganda was 6.6% in 2019, according to World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest poverty: share of population living on less than $1 a day recorded in Uganda?
The highest recorded value was 22.2% in 1989.
What is the lowest poverty: share of population living on less than $1 a day recorded in Uganda?
The lowest recorded value was 5.1% in 2012.
How does Uganda rank for poverty: share of population living on less than $1 a day?
Uganda ranks 7th out of 120 countries with data for 2019.
Is poverty: share of population living on less than $1 a day rising or falling in Uganda?
Over the last ten years it is down 14.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Uganda data come from?
The figures come from World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Poverty: Share of population living on less than $1 a day. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 10 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Poverty: Share of population living on less than $1 a day
Unit
%
Source
World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
120 places, 2,148 data points, 1963–2025
Last refreshed

Percentage of population living in households with an income or consumption below $1 per day.