Fighting against poverty on all fronts

Poland records the greatest decrease in the risk of poverty or social exclusion in the European Union.

As results from the recent data published by Eurostat in 2017, there were 19.5% of the Poles at risk of poverty or social exclusion in 2017. That implies an over one-third decrease against 2008 (30.5%). Such a significant decrease has not been recorded by any current Member State of the European Union during the equivalent period.

This value of the at risk of poverty indicator placed Poland below the EU average, just after Malta (19.2%) and Germany (19%), but before Belgium (20.3%) or Luxembourg (21.5%).

In 2017, Bulgaria, Romania and Greece faced the greatest risk of poverty or social exclusion, with the indicator staying well above the threshold of 30%.

On the other hand, the Czech Republic and Finland were the best off in terms of poverty risk.

The indicator of very low work intensity in a householdtakes record low values for Poland as well. Very low work intensity was experienced only by 5.7% of the Poles aged up to 60 years. In 2017, this was the third best result in the EU, after Slovakia and the Czech Republic. To compare, Germany recorded 8.7% and Spain as much as 12.8%. 

In the years 2008-2017, Poland recorded decreases below the EU average in terms of the remaining components forming the at risk of poverty or social exclusion indicator:

·    the at risk of relative poverty indicator including social transfers as income– a decrease from 16.9% to 15% in 2017 (the EU average of 16.9%);

·    the indicator of severe material deprivation – a decrease from 17.7% to 5.9% (the EU average of 6.9%).

Calculated by Eurostat, the at risk of poverty or social exclusion indicator combines data of three sub-indicators: the at risk of relative poverty indicator including social transfers as income, the indicator of severe material deprivation and the indicator of very low work intensity in a household.