While India lifts 269 million out of extreme poverty in a decade, Pakistan sinks deeper, reflecting governance failures and misplaced priorities.
New Delhi | June 10, 2025:
New data released by the World Bank has revealed a widening gulf in poverty alleviation between India and Pakistan, offering a stark reflection of contrasting development models over the last 15 years.
The figures show that India has lifted more people out of poverty than the entire population of Pakistan, while its neighbour has seen poverty rise sharply, exacerbated by economic mismanagement and militant funding.
📊 The Numbers Tell the Tale
- According to the World Bank’s Poverty and Shared Prosperity report, India’s extreme poverty fell from 27.1% in 2012 to 5.3% in 2022, even after revising the threshold from $2.15 to $3 per person/day.
- The number of Indians living in extreme poverty dropped from 344.47 million in 2011-12 to 75.24 million in 2022-23 — a reduction of 269 million people, which is more than Pakistan’s entire population.
In contrast:
- Pakistan’s extreme poverty surged from 4.9% in 2017 to 16.5% in 2021, with experts suggesting that the actual figures may be even worse due to outdated survey methodologies.
- When using a broader poverty line of $4.2/day, Pakistan’s poverty headcount rose from 39.8% to 44.7% between 2017 and 2021.
🏦 Aid Dependence vs. Economic Growth
India’s economic momentum, recently marked by overtaking Japan as the world’s fourth-largest economy, is rooted in structural reforms, infrastructure investment, and welfare schemes. In stark contrast, Pakistan’s economic model is dominated by foreign bailouts, military spending, and governance failures.
Pakistan’s debt dependence:
- 25 IMF bailouts totalling $44.57 billion
- $38.8 billion from World Bank, ADB, and Islamic Development Bank
- $25 billion from China
- Additional funds from Eurobonds, Sukuks, Saudi Arabia, UAE, and the Paris Club
🔥 Misplaced Priorities and Military Control
Analysts attribute Pakistan’s worsening poverty to the Pakistan Army’s dominance in policymaking, its control over aid allocation, and a continued obsession with India through asymmetric warfare and terror funding.
📉 ‘Bleeding Itself’ Instead of Development
Economist Piyush Doshi, co-founder of the Foundation for Economic Development, argued that:
“When a nation prioritizes defence over health, education, and jobs — especially under an economic crisis — it’s no longer protecting its people, but impoverishing them.”
He called for tougher international financial scrutiny, likening it to FATF conditions, to ensure aid benefits citizens rather than the military elite.
📌 Conclusion: A Tale of Two Paths
The World Bank data paints a tale of two nations:
One using policy, political will, and people-first governance to overcome a colonial past, and the other undermined by military dominance, debt dependency, and state-sponsored terror.
As global South nations look for models of inclusive development, the message is clear:
Poverty is not destiny — it’s a matter of leadership.
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