Max Roser

Money Moves

As of September 2026: Director of Our World in Data, a research publication at the University of Oxford

Mauritius, Egypt, Ghana, and six other African countries have more than doubled their average incomes since 1990. The group also includes Cabo Verde, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Uganda, Burkina Faso, and Mozambique.

Updated Sep 11

New Capabilities

As of May 2026: Professor at Oxford University

For most of human history, the average person could expect to live about 30 years. Two centuries of accumulated advances—clean water, sanitation, vaccines, antibiotics, nutrition, and poverty reduction—have more than doubled that figure to 72 years globally. The change is so comprehensive that the global average today exceeds what the healthiest country achieved in 1950.

Updated May 22

Built World

As of May 2026: Active researcher at Oxford University

In 1820, more than 80% of the world's population lived in extreme poverty. By 2019, that figure had fallen to 8.9% at the then-$2.15/day line, a decline of roughly 0.35 percentage points per year sustained over two centuries.

Updated May 22