Historically, income has been the primary measure of poverty. Today, however, a growing number of countries recognize that well-being is about more than just money. It includes access to quality education and healthcare, decent housing, and employment opportunities. The UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) reflect this broader view: Target 1.2. calls for reducing 'poverty in all its dimensions' by 2030. Achieving this requires new tools that can capture the multidimensional nature of human well-being.

In 2010, the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) jointly developed one such tool: the global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI). Instead of relying on a single indicator like income, the MPI assesses a range of deprivations that a person might experience simultaneously, including poor health, lack of education, inadequate housing, and the lack of decent work and savings. The result is a detailed map that shows not only where people are vulnerable but also why.

The index is based on the flexible Alkire-Foster method, which allows each country to tailor indicators to national priorities. Moving away from income-based measures has become a global trend. A growing number of countries are developing national versions of the MPI, adapting measurements to local contexts.

More than a decade after creating the global MPI, UNDP continues to support countries in adapting the tool to national needs. Belarus joined this effort in 2023.

Belarus has made significant progress in reducing monetary poverty: in 2024, only 3.5% of the population lived below the national poverty line. The country is now shifting its focus from reducing poverty to ensuring a high quality of life. To support this transition, UNDP provided expert assistance to help the National Statistical Committee (Belstat) adapt the global methodology. In partnership with UNDP's Regional Hub in Istanbul, Belstat reviewed international best practices and developed proposals for the index's components.

The Belarusian version of the MPI uses five key dimensions: education, health and environment, housing, employment, and standard of living. Each dimension includes specific indicators, ranging from whether adult family members have higher education to whether the household has internet access.

Drawing on UNDP's methodological recommendations, Belstat developed a national methodology and conducted the first calculations in 2024 based on a selective household survey. The results for 2023 showed an MPI of 0.021 for households and 0.01 for the population. These figures indicate an extremely low level of multidimensional deprivation: only 2.4% of the population lives in multidimensional poverty.

These results enabled Belarus to report data for SDG Indicator 1.2.2 on its national platform for the first time.

Supporting national MPI development aligns directly with UNDP's global mission: promoting sustainable development by strengthening governance and planning systems. In a country where income-based poverty is already low, the focus naturally shifts to improving quality of life and preventing new forms of social exclusion. The index enables the government to move from general support measures to targeted solutions, directing budgetary funds where they can have the greatest impact. It also helps identify risks before they become social challenges, which is a far more effective long-term strategy. The country's experience has already been shared at international UN forums in Istanbul, Geneva, and Tashkent.

Developing the national index is only the beginning. The methodology is now being validated by the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative, the global authority in this field. Once approved, the index will be calculated regularly, providing annual data for SDG Indicator 1.2.2 to track progress in reducing multidimensional poverty.

This focus on quality of life is leading to a more ambitious next step. With UNDP's support, work has begun on a National Well-Being Index. Widely used in several countries, this tool measures a broader set of indicators: not only economic factors such as income, employment, and housing, but also social dimensions like access to education and healthcare, security, gender equality and social protection; environmental conditions such as air and water quality, climate risk vulnerability; and even subjective measures like life satisfaction. Belarus will adapt the indicators to its national context. The index will assess both current living standards and prospects for future generations.

The shift from measuring poverty to measuring well-being is a logical next step for an upper-middle-income country like Belarus. With UNDP's support, Belarus is moving toward a comprehensive strategy and a more sophisticated, data-driven approach to improving quality of life – one that goes beyond income to capture what truly matters.