Over 23 percent of Sri Lanka’s population is living below the poverty line, a World Bank report titled “World Development Indicators (WDI) 2015” maintains.
The international poverty line is two dollars a day or an income
The poverty headcount ratio at $1.25 a day is the share of the population living on less than $1.25 a day in 2005 purchasing power parity (PPP) terms. The PPP 2005 $1.25 a day poverty line is the average poverty line of the 15 poorest countries in the world, estimated from household surveys conducted by national statistical offices or by private agencies under the supervision of government or international agencies.
A comparison of regional countries showed that the poverty rate in Pakistan and Maldives was about 50 percent and 12.2 percent, respectively. The poverty rate in India and Bangladesh was higher than Sri Lanka with 59.2 percent and 76.5 percent.
