Bishkek (TDI): Kyrgyzstan’s national poverty rate dropped to 25.7% in 2024, marking a 4.1% decrease from the previous year, new data released by the National Statistical Committee of the Kyrgyz Republic revealed.
In 2023, nearly 1.87 million people were below the poverty line, and close to two-thirds of them lived outside urban centers.
For 2024, the state set the poverty threshold at 65,417 soms per person per year, equivalent to roughly $748.
The extreme poverty line was pegged at around 41,349 soms, which comes to approximately $472. As of January 2025, the country’s population had reached about 7.3 million.
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A key factor helping many households stay afloat is money sent home by family members working abroad. Russia remains the primary destination for Kyrgyz workers. According to regional sources, more than 600,000 Kyrgyz nationals currently reside outside the country.
By the end of 2024, more than 379,000 people registered with the Russian migration authorities.
These remittances have been described with considerable weight. According to a World Bank report on migration in Central Asia, these remittances constituted 24% of the GDP of Kyrgyzstan during those times.
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In a regional effort to fight economic hardship, China pledged $3.7 billion in aid for Central Asia, with Kyrgyzstan included in the package. This commitment was announced by President Xi Jinping at a China–Central Asia summit in Xi’an in May 2023.
According to the statement, part of the aid will go toward technology partnerships and creating jobs through Chinese companies operating in the region, an effort aimed at long-term poverty reduction.
Farkhund Yousafzai is an Associate Editor at The Diplomatic Insight.
