The Gendered Face of Poverty in Iran

In recent years, the economic crisis in Iran has deepened, with poverty now affecting over 30% of the population by the end of the Persian year 1403 (March 2025), according to official figures.However, according to unofficial estimates, around 80% of the population in Iran lives below the poverty line and cannot consume 2,100 calories a day; this means over 72 million people are living in poverty in Iran.Yet behind this general statistic lies a harsher, more invisible truth: women in Iran are disproportionately impacted by poverty, both economically and socially, due to structural inequalities, legal discrimination, and systemic exclusion from the labor market.A report by the Iranian Parliament’s Research Center (Majlis) confirms that by 1401 (March 2023), over 32 million Iranians lived below absolute poverty. This line is defined as the inability to afford necessities such as food, housing, healthcare, and education. But women, particularly female heads of households, rural women, and single mothers, face unique vulnerabilities that these figures only hint at.Support the show