Almost a quarter of children at risk of poverty in 2012

The results of the Survey on Income and Living Conditions (SILC), included in a report released by the National Statistics Office, indicate that 23.1 per cent of children under 18 years of age were at-risk-of-poverty in 2012.

Those mostly at risk lived in households with a Work Intensity of zero, at 72.8 per cent. On the other hand, the at-risk-of-poverty rate of children in households with five or more persons was calculated at 27.0 per cent, and at 49.5 per cent for children who lived in single-parent households.

With regard to those aged 65 and over, the at-risk-of-poverty rate was calculated at 17.3 per cent. Of these, 71.0 per cent owned their home.

The S80/S20 ratio refers to the proportion of total income received by the richest 20 per cent of the population to that received by the poorest 20 per cent. In respect of 2012, this ratio was calculated at 3.9, decreasing to 3.5 for persons aged 65 and over.

Material Deprivation

According to responses received from households, 16.6 per cent of children were living in households that could not afford to eat a meal with meat, chicken, fish, or a vegetarian equivalent every other day. Such a proportion was estimated at 9.2 per cent for the population segment aged 65 and over.

Additionally, 27.2 per cent of children were living in households that could not afford unexpected financial expenses, compared to 23.8 per cent of persons aged 65 and over.

Another material deprivation indicator is the ability to keep one’s home adequately warm in winter. Basing on perceptions that emerged from the survey, nearly 22 per cent of children and also of the elderly were living in households that faced difficulties in affording such amenities.

In 2012, 12.3 per cent of persons aged under 18 were living in severely materially deprived households. This proportion was calculated at 6.4 per cent for persons aged 65 and over.

At-Risk-of-Poverty or Social Exclusion

The at-risk-of-poverty or social exclusion rate for children was calculated at 30.9 per cent. For the elderly, this rate reached 22.3 per cent. From a gender perspective, men in the 65-and-over age bracket were more likely to be at-risk-of-poverty or social exclusion than their female counterparts.