Ashanti and Eastern regions recorded the highest number of multidimensionally poor people in Ghana, with more than one million affected in each region, underscoring how population size is reshaping the country’s poverty map even as national indicators improve.
While regions such as North East and Savannah continue to post the highest poverty incidence rates — above 50%, the data shows that high-population regions are now carrying the heaviest absolute burden of deprivation.
At the national level, poverty remains sharply divided along rural-urban lines. In Q3 2025, multidimensional poverty in rural areas reached 31.9%, more than double the 14.2% recorded in urban centres, reflecting unequal access to basic services and productive opportunities.
Meanwhile, Greater Accra and the Western Region recorded the lowest poverty incidence, both remaining below 20%, highlighting wide regional disparities that demand geographically targeted policy responses.
The drivers of poverty remain largely structural. Living conditions and health deprivations dominate, with lack of health insurance coverage accounting for 26.5% of multidimensional poverty, followed by nutrition (14.4%), employment (12.3%), school attendance (8.5%), overcrowding (8.4%), and limited access to toilet facilities (8.0%) in Q3 2025.
However, the report also flags emerging pressures that could undermine recent gains. Between Q2 and Q3 2025, overcrowding deprivation nearly doubled, rising from 11.4% to 21.6%, while school attendance deprivation increased from 7.0% to 9.4%.
Employment deprivation also edged up from 3.8% to 4.5%, signalling growing vulnerability in labour market outcomes among poor households.
Together, the data suggests that poverty reduction in Ghana is no longer just about where poverty is most intense, but where the largest numbers of people are affected — a shift with major implications for public spending, infrastructure investment, and social protection design.
Ghana has improved living standards but jobs remain a challenge – IMF
