Poverty and living standards in Meta, Colombia: official figures
12.3% of the people of Meta were in multidimensional poverty in 2025, according to DANE (15th lowest of 33 departments and Bogota; Colombia 9.9%). That is up 1.9 percentage points from 2024 and down 3.3 percentage points from 2018, when it was 15.6%.
Is poverty higher in rural Meta?
In 2025 multidimensional poverty in Meta was 7.8% in municipal head towns and 26.4% in villages and rural areas (Colombia 6.3% and 22.4%). People in poverty were deprived in 41.0% of the weighted indicators on average.
Source: Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE) · saved copyAre women poorer than men in Meta?
In 2025, 11.9% of women and girls and 12.7% of men and boys in Meta were in multidimensional poverty, according to DANE's survey of living conditions.
Source: Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE) · saved copyHow many people in Meta lack clean water?
16.2% of people in Meta lived in households without access to an improved water source in 2025 (14th highest of 33; Colombia 8.3%), and 8.9% in households without adequate sewage or toilet disposal (Colombia 9.2%).
Source: Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE) · saved copyHow many homes in Meta are overcrowded?
9.3% of people in Meta lived in critically overcrowded homes in 2025 (11th highest of 33; Colombia 5.4%), and 3.2% 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 Meta?
76.2% of people in Meta lived in households where at least one worker was informal in 2025 (tied for 11th lowest of 33; Colombia 70.0%), and 10.9% in households affected by long-term unemployment (Colombia 13.1%).
Source: Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE) · saved copyHow common is child labour in Meta?
In 2025, 2.7% of people in Meta lived in households with child labour (Colombia 1.2%), and 5.2% 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 Meta?
22.1% of the people of Meta were in monetary poverty in 2025, about 244,000 people (8th lowest of 24 areas DANE reports; Colombia 28.0%). The rate was 23.6% in 2024 and 32.8% in 2021.
Source: Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE) · saved copyHow many people live in extreme poverty in Meta?
8.0% of the people of Meta were in extreme monetary poverty in 2025, about 89,000 people, meaning their household income per person was below the cost of a basic food basket (12th lowest of 24; Colombia 9.6%). It was 7.7% in 2024.
Source: Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE) · saved copyWhat is the poverty line in Meta?
Average household income per person in Meta was 1,143,421 pesos a month in 2025 (Colombia 1,281,590), against a monetary poverty line of 450,430 pesos per person a month. The Gini coefficient of income inequality was 0.461 (4th lowest of 24; Colombia 0.531).
Source: Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE) · saved copyAre women more likely to be poor in Meta?
In 2025, 23.2% of women and 20.9% of men in Meta were in monetary poverty (Colombia 29.1% and 26.8%).
Source: Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE) · saved copyHow Meta compares with other departments
People in multidimensional poverty (2025)
Meta ranks 19 of 33, highest first.
| Rank | Region | People in multidimensional poverty |
|---|---|---|
| 16 | Narino | 13.2% |
| 17 | Cauca | 13.0% |
| 18 | Arauca | 12.7% |
| 19 | Meta | 12.3% |
| 20 | Tolima | 12.2% |
| 21 | Huila | 9.7% |
| 22 | Antioquia | 9.5% |
People in monetary poverty (2025)
Meta ranks 17 of 24, highest first. DANE reports 23 departments and Bogota
| Rank | Region | People in monetary poverty |
|---|---|---|
| 14 | Tolima | 28.0% |
| 15 | Atlantico | 27.3% |
| 16 | Santander | 24.0% |
| 17 | Meta | 22.1% |
| 18 | Valle del Cauca | 21.8% |
| 19 | Quindio | 20.9% |
| 20 | Risaralda | 20.2% |
People in extreme monetary poverty (2025)
Meta ranks 13 of 24, highest first. DANE reports 23 departments and Bogota
| Rank | Region | People in extreme monetary poverty |
|---|---|---|
| 10 | Caqueta | 12.3% |
| 11 | Boyaca | 10.6% |
| 12 | Narino | 10.1% |
| 13 | Meta | 8.0% |
| 14 | Norte de Santander | 7.9% |
| 15 | Valle del Cauca | 7.7% |
| 16 | Atlantico | 7.4% |
People in households without an improved water source (2025)
Meta ranks 14 of 33, highest first.
| Rank | Region | People in households without an improved water source |
|---|---|---|
| 11 | Caqueta | 19.3% |
| 12 | Cordoba | 16.7% |
| 13 | Cauca | 16.4% |
| 14 | Meta | 16.2% |
| 15 | Bolivar | 14.5% |
| 16 | Norte de Santander | 13.1% |
| 17 | Magdalena | 10.4% |
People in households with informal work (2025)
Meta ranks 23 of 33, highest first.
| Rank | Region | People in households with informal work |
|---|---|---|
| 20 | Amazonas | 78.2% |
| 21 | Tolima | 77.2% |
| 22 | Boyaca | 76.2% |
| 23 | Meta | 76.2% |
| 24 | Atlantico | 73.7% |
| 25 | Quindio | 69.2% |
| 26 | Santander | 68.7% |
More on Meta: 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…)
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