Global Poverty Declining?

There is no one definition of poverty. Poverty in the US is defined by the federal government and what you are calling "real" poverty is really defined in economics as "Absolute" poverty. Just because someone doesn't fit the definition of absolute poverty does not mean that they do not live in poverty. In fact the article talks about wages and not accounting for anything like people selling public trash or bottles. It is talking about people who earn less than $2 a day. With minimum wage laws, we cannot earn less than $2 a day without earning nothing and because of these laws, many people who could be paid more than that are kept in poverty earning nothing except what is received from charity.

One fact about the world that is not nearly well-known enough is how much things are improving across most of the developing world, and how fast. China alone has lifted several hundred million people - more than the entire population of the U.S. - out of extreme poverty, and even more into the middle class. India continues to do so as well. Most of the fastest-growing economies in the world are actually in Africa, where living standards are rising rapidly. Permanent, structural improvement does not happen in great leaps. It happens over time, with slow, gradual growth, with hiccups along the way. That's how it happened in every developed country in its own history. That's how it's happening today in countries that are just now developing. And their development is a win-win for them and us. Don't be seduced by the foolish "us or them" economic growth narrative - as India, China and Brazil thrive, their newly open markets provide opportunities for us as well. Good news.

[Economist]