A new report says more than 1 billion people in the world live in acute poverty, over half are children and nearly 40% live in conflict-torn and fragile countries.

A staggering 455 million of the world’s poor live in countries exposed to violent conflict, hindering and even reversing hard-won progress to reduce poverty, according to the latest update of the global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) released today.

India has the highest number of people living in extreme poverty, with 234 million people affected out of its 1.4 billion population. Next in line are Pakistan, Ethiopia, Nigeria, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The five countries make up for nearly half of the world's poor population, the report says.

More than 1 billion people in the world live in acute poverty, over half are children and nearly 40% live in conflict-torn and fragile countries, according to a report released Thursday. The report by the U.

More than one billion people are living in acute poverty across the globe, a UN Development Program report said Thursday, with children accounting for over half of those affected.