APD | Number of people in extreme poverty in Asia and the Pacific down to 264 million

By APD writer Melo M. Acuña

The Asian Development Bank reported the reduction in the number of people living in extreme poverty in Asia and the Pacific went declined from 1.1 billion in 2002 to 264 million in 2015.

According to Asian Development Bank’s annual statistical report entitled Key Indicators for Asia and the Pacific 2019 along with an online database Key Indicators Database both released today, both present the latest statistics on a comprehensive set of economic, financial, social and environmental indicators including Sustainable Development Goals for the 49 members of the ADB. It offers more than 1,000 statistical indicators from the year 2000 onwards in a user-friendly and accessible interface.

The region’s share of global gross domestic product (in current United States dollars) surpassed one third in 2018 while the region’s role in global value production chains and as a destination for higher-value products is also expanding.

Asia generated 23.0% of the income from the production of world exports in 2000 which has increased to 30.2% by 2018.

“Key indicators 2019 show that the Asia and Pacific region is increasing its strong contribution to the global economy and to the pursuit of the SGDs,” said ADB Chief Economist Yasuyuki Sawada. He added as the region makes progress to reach the SGDs, timely and reliable and granular data remain crucial in formulating, implementing, and monitoring policies and progress.

The ADB released the 50th edition of its annual statistical report which includes a special supplement on the use of computer-assisted personal interviewing (CAPI), or the collection of survey data using handheld digital devices including tables and smartphones. A study on the use of CAPI techniques was conducted in the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Sri Lanka and Viet Nam and found they can reduce the total number of errors in data collection and are more cost-effective for large-scale surveys.

According to the ADB Database, the region’s biggest economy, the People’s Republic of China had a population of 1.3 billion by end-year of 2018. It had 806.8 million people in its labor force in 2017. It posted its Gross Domestic Product at current prices at 90.0 trillion Yuan in 2018.

China’s Services sector posted 48.0 of GDP, followed by Industry with 43.3% and Agriculture at 8.7% of GDP.

(ASIA PACIFIC DAILY)