Main menu For students For teachers Explore our subjects Student events & courses

Explore

More for students
Sign in

Teaching Economics

Topic updates

Extreme poverty: Transforming the lives of the ultra-poor

Geoff Riley

12th December 2015

Share this content:

The ultra-poor is a term linked to extreme poverty rates in some of the world's least developed countries. It was first coined in 1986 by Michael Lipton of the University of Sussex and is defined as “a group of people who eat below 80% of their energy requirements despite spending at least 80% of income on food”. The majority tends to be landless rural women.

Share this content:

Geoff Riley

Geoff Riley FRSA has been teaching Economics for nearly forty years. He has over twenty years experience as Head of Economics at leading schools. He writes extensively and is a contributor and presenter on CPD and Revision conferences in the UK and overseas.

@tutor2uGeoff

You might also like

Country Profile for 2026 Exams: Vietnam

14th March 2026

In the News Teaching Activity – How does conflict influence growth and economic development? (Jan 2026)

22nd January 2026

Poverty & Inequality: The Economic Divide Explained

3rd March 2025

Electricity Sparks Change in a Senegalese Village

27th January 2025

Purchasing Power Parity & The Big Mac Index | A-Level Economics Mastery

Topic Videos

Breaking Myths: Surprising Insights from 2024’s Development Economics Research

29th December 2024

From Burden to Opportunity: Côte d’Ivoire’s Debt-for-Development Revolution

29th December 2024

Case Study: Addressing the Job Creation Challenge in Sub-Saharan Africa

16th December 2024