Poverty rising in Poland

A report released by the Central Statistics Office (GUS) on Monday shows that the rate of people living below the breadline went up by nearly a percentage point, from 5.8 to 6.5 percent, between 2010 and 2015.

In the same period, the total number of Poles eligible for social benefits reached the double digits, rising from 7.4 to 12.2 percent.

GUS figures, however, also indicate a drop in the rate of people facing so-called relative poverty, a benchmark which denotes households with an income below 50 percent of the Polish average. The number of people affected went down from 17.4 to 15.5 percent of the entire population.

Poles drawing income from non-commercial sources, such as social benefits and pensions, were among citizens most at risk of extreme poverty, alongside farmers, the study found. (aba/pk)

Source: IAR