Poverty, however, does not afflict all equally. Most of the poor live in the country-side. In Bangladesh in 1989, rural poor numbered about 43 million - more than seven times the number of poor in the cities. But as people flee the farms, the number of poor in urban areas is growing. In about 12 years, one out of two people living in absolute poverty will be found in urban areas.
Women also tend to be burdened by poverty more often than men.
Female-headed households are more likely to be poor. Women also face greater hardship than men in lifting themselves and their children out of the poverty trap. In Pakistan as in some other economies, the gender gap in education is substantial, women have fewer employment opportunities than men in rural areas, and they lack access to land. Geographically, South Asia remains the epicentre of poverty. In 1993, 43.1 per cent of the population in the subcontinent was living below the poverty line.