Romania 2022 – Highest Share of People at Risk of Poverty or Social Exclusion in the EU
In 2022, the shares of people at risk of poverty or social exclusion varied across the EU countries, with highest values reported in Romania (34%), Bulgaria (32%), Greece and Spain (both 26%). On the other hand, the lowest shares were recorded in three states from the former Eastern Bloc: Czech Republic (12%), Slovenia (13%) and Poland (16%).
95.3 million people in the EU (22% of the population) were at risk of poverty or social exclusion, i.e. lived in households experiencing at least one of the three poverty and social exclusion risks: risk of poverty, severe material and social deprivation, and/or living in a household with very low work intensity. The figure remained relatively stable compared with 2021 (95.4 million, 22% of the population).
*In 2022, 95.3 million people in the EU were at risk of poverty or social exclusion; this was equivalent to 21.6 % of the EU population.
* The risk of poverty or social exclusion in the EU was, in 2022, higher for women than for men (22.7 % compared with 20.4 %).
* Over one-fifth (22.4 %) of the EU population living in households with dependent children was at risk of poverty or social exclusion in 2022
The risk of poverty and social exclusion is not dependent strictly on a household's level of income, as it may also reflect joblessness, low work intensity, working status, or a range of other socio-economic characteristics. To calculate the number or share of people who are at risk of poverty or social exclusion three separate measures are combined and this covers those persons who are in at least one of these three situations:
-persons who are at risk of poverty, in other words, with an equivalised disposable income that is below the at-risk-of-poverty threshold;
-persons who suffer from severe material and social deprivation, in other words, those who cannot afford at least seven out of thirteen deprivation items (six related to the individual and seven related to the household) that are considered by most people to be desirable or even necessary to lead an adequate quality of life;
-persons (aged less than 65 years) living in a household with very low work intensity, in other words, those living in households where adults worked for 20 % or less of their total combined work-time potential during the previous twelve months.
Working status was unsurprisingly one of the main socio-economic characteristics that impacted upon the risk of poverty or social exclusion. In 2022, while the risk of poverty or social exclusion in the EU was 11.1 % for employed persons and 19.1 % for retired persons, it was almost two-thirds (65.2 %) for unemployed people and stood at 42.9 % for other inactive persons, in other words people who — for a reason other than retirement — were not working or unemployed. Over one-fifth of the EU population living in households with dependent children were at risk of poverty or social exclusion in 2022 and the risk of poverty or social exclusion was slightly lower among households without dependent children.
Women, young adults aged 18-24 years, people with a low level of educational attainment and unemployed persons were, on average, more likely to be at risk of poverty or social exclusion in 2022 than other groups within the EU population.
Concerning age, the highest risk of poverty or social exclusion in the EU was recorded for young adults aged 18-24 years (26.5 %), while the lowest risk was recorded for adults aged 25-49 years (19.9 %). Between these two age groups, the risk of poverty or social exclusion was 20.2 % for people aged 65 years and over and 21.0 % among the population aged 50-64 years. The youngest age group, persons aged less than 18 years, also had a relatively high risk (24.7 %).
In addition to age, educational attainment had a considerable impact on the risk of poverty or social exclusion. At EU level, more than one-third (34.5 %) of all persons aged 18 years and over with a low level of educational attainment (ISCED levels 0-2) were at risk of poverty or social exclusion, compared with 10.5 % of people in the same age group with a tertiary (high) level of educational attainment (ISCED levels 5-8). The corresponding percentage for people with a medium level of educational attainment (ISCED levels 3-4) was 19.8 %.
Unemployed people faced a particularly high risk of poverty or social exclusion. In the EU, almost two-thirds (65.2 %) of the unemployed aged 18 years and over were at risk of poverty or social exclusion in 2022. Inactive persons (other than in retirement) faced the second-highest risk on the basis of an analysis by activity status, with 42.9 % at risk. For comparison, the share of people in retirement who were at risk of poverty or social exclusion was 19.1 % and the share of employed persons was 11.1 %.
In the EU as a whole, the risk of poverty or social exclusion for households with dependent children was a little higher than for those without. More than one-fifth (22.4 %) of people living in households with dependent children in the EU were at risk of poverty or social exclusion which was slightly higher than the respective share among households without dependent children (20.8 %).
Nevertheless, these rates varied considerably across the EU Member States. For people living in households with dependent children, the rate ranged from peaks of 36.0 % in Romania, 30.7 % in Bulgaria and 29.2 % in Spain down to 11.7 % in Denmark, 11.3 % in Czech Republic and 8.9 % in Slovenia. For those in households without dependent children, the rates varied from 34.5 % in Estonia, 33.8 % in Bulgaria and 33.4 % in Latvia to 14.5 % in Luxembourg, 12.3 % in Czech Republic and 11.4 % in Slovakia.
Photo source: pxhere.com.
