Poverty and living standards in Huila, Colombia: official figures
9.7% of the people of Huila were in multidimensional poverty in 2025, according to DANE (13th lowest of 33 departments and Bogota; Colombia 9.9%). That is down 1.2 percentage points from 2024 and down 8.3 percentage points from 2018, when it was 18.0%.
Is poverty higher in rural Huila?
In 2025 multidimensional poverty in Huila was 6.3% in municipal head towns and 14.7% in villages and rural areas (Colombia 6.3% and 22.4%). People in poverty were deprived in 37.3% of the weighted indicators on average.
Source: Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE) · saved copyAre women poorer than men in Huila?
In 2025, 9.2% of women and girls and 10.2% of men and boys in Huila were in multidimensional poverty, according to DANE's survey of living conditions.
Source: Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE) · saved copyHow many people in Huila lack clean water?
8.5% of people in Huila lived in households without access to an improved water source in 2025 (15th lowest of 33; Colombia 8.3%), and 2.3% in households without adequate sewage or toilet disposal (Colombia 9.2%).
Source: Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE) · saved copyHow many homes in Huila are overcrowded?
5.0% of people in Huila lived in critically overcrowded homes in 2025 (13th lowest of 33; Colombia 5.4%), and 3.6% in homes with inadequate floors such as earth (Colombia 4.6%).
Source: Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE) · saved copyHow common is informal work in Huila?
81.7% of people in Huila lived in households where at least one worker was informal in 2025 (17th highest of 33; Colombia 70.0%), and 11.5% in households affected by long-term unemployment (Colombia 13.1%).
Source: Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE) · saved copyHow common is child labour in Huila?
In 2025, 3.1% of people in Huila lived in households with child labour (Colombia 1.2%), and 6.4% in households where young children faced barriers to early-childhood care services (Colombia 5.3%).
Source: Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE) · saved copyWhat is the poverty rate in Huila?
39.8% of the people of Huila were in monetary poverty in 2025, about 464,000 people (9th highest of 24 areas DANE reports; Colombia 28.0%). The rate was 40.4% in 2024 and 47.1% in 2021.
Source: Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE) · saved copyHow many people live in extreme poverty in Huila?
14.5% of the people of Huila were in extreme monetary poverty in 2025, about 169,000 people, meaning their household income per person was below the cost of a basic food basket (9th highest of 24; Colombia 9.6%). It was 13.8% in 2024.
Source: Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE) · saved copyWhat is the poverty line in Huila?
Average household income per person in Huila was 756,247 pesos a month in 2025 (Colombia 1,281,590), against a monetary poverty line of 431,296 pesos per person a month. The Gini coefficient of income inequality was 0.487 (11th lowest of 24; Colombia 0.531).
Source: Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE) · saved copyAre women more likely to be poor in Huila?
In 2025, 41.5% of women and 38.1% of men in Huila were in monetary poverty (Colombia 29.1% and 26.8%).
Source: Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE) · saved copyHow Huila compares with other departments
People in multidimensional poverty (2025)
Huila ranks 21 of 33, highest first.
| Rank | Region | People in multidimensional poverty |
|---|---|---|
| 18 | Arauca | 12.7% |
| 19 | Meta | 12.3% |
| 20 | Tolima | 12.2% |
| 21 | Huila | 9.7% |
| 22 | Antioquia | 9.5% |
| 23 | Casanare | 8.9% |
| 24 | Atlantico | 8.2% |
People in monetary poverty (2025)
Huila ranks 9 of 24, highest first. DANE reports 23 departments and Bogota
| Rank | Region | People in monetary poverty |
|---|---|---|
| 6 | Cesar | 44.4% |
| 7 | Cordoba | 44.0% |
| 8 | Cauca | 40.9% |
| 9 | Huila | 39.8% |
| 10 | Caqueta | 34.9% |
| 11 | Norte de Santander | 33.7% |
| 12 | Narino | 33.4% |
People in extreme monetary poverty (2025)
Huila ranks 9 of 24, highest first. DANE reports 23 departments and Bogota
| Rank | Region | People in extreme monetary poverty |
|---|---|---|
| 6 | Cordoba | 17.9% |
| 7 | Cesar | 16.5% |
| 8 | Bolivar | 15.7% |
| 9 | Huila | 14.5% |
| 10 | Caqueta | 12.3% |
| 11 | Boyaca | 10.6% |
| 12 | Narino | 10.1% |
People in households without an improved water source (2025)
Huila ranks 19 of 33, highest first.
| Rank | Region | People in households without an improved water source |
|---|---|---|
| 16 | Norte de Santander | 13.1% |
| 17 | Magdalena | 10.4% |
| 18 | Tolima | 9.0% |
| 19 | Huila | 8.5% |
| 20 | Sucre | 8.1% |
| 21 | Santander | 7.0% |
| 22 | Caldas | 7.0% |
People in households with informal work (2025)
Huila ranks 17 of 33, highest first.
| Rank | Region | People in households with informal work |
|---|---|---|
| 14 | Bolivar | 83.4% |
| 15 | Cesar | 83.3% |
| 16 | Guaviare | 82.7% |
| 17 | Huila | 81.7% |
| 18 | Norte de Santander | 81.0% |
| 19 | Casanare | 80.5% |
| 20 | Amazonas | 78.2% |
More on Huila: overview · economy and jobs · health · education and schools · government budget · Colombia
Sources
- Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE): Pobreza multidimensional, anexo departamental 2025 (Encuesta Nacional de Calidad de Vida): incidence by department and area, household deprivations by indicator, intensity and incidence by sex, 2018-2025 (updated 14 April 2026), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 73caab08046d…)
- Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE): Pobreza monetaria y desigualdad, anexo departamental 2025 (GEIH): incidence of monetary and extreme monetary poverty, people in poverty, per-capita income, poverty lines and Gini, total national, 23 departments and Bogota D.C., 2021-2025 (published 12 August 2026), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 e27a18ee48d0…)
Each saved copy is the file exactly as downloaded, kept so the figures can be checked even if the source changes. Report an error.