The International Day for the Eradication of Poverty has been observed every year since 1993, when the United Nations General Assembly designated this day to promote awareness of the need to eradicate poverty and destitution in all countries.

With its partners, UNFPA works to reach people living in poverty who lack access to education and health care, including reproductive health information and services. This keeps them trapped in a vicious cycle of poverty, which runs from one generation to the next. Women and girls are often the worst affected, facing the additional threats of early marriage and adolescent pregnancy, as well as steeper barriers to education and employment. 

To help break this poverty trap, UNFPA works to improve sexual and reproductive health, eliminate gender inequalities and empower women to take control of their own lives.