Greek Reporter — Almost 1.5 million Greeks, more than one in ten, live in extreme poverty, most of them unemployed and young, a recent study by the diaNEOsis non government organization says.
Specifically, the study says, 1,488,714 Greeks, most of them young and unemployed live in extreme poverty, meaning that they are deprived of basic food items, telephone service, clothes and vacations.
Extreme poverty has hit 68.5% of households with an unemployed head of the house and 45.5% of student households. Overall, in 2016, 13.6% of Greek people lived in extreme poverty.
Poverty: Absolute poverty or extreme poverty is measured in relation to the amount of money necessary to meet basic needs such as food, clothing, and shelter. The concept of absolute poverty is not concerned with broader quality of life issues or with the overall level of inequality in society.Economists often seek to identify the families whose economic position (defined as command over resources) falls below some minimally acceptance level. The international standard of extreme poverty is set to the possession of less than $1.90 a day.
“What we find extremely interesting is the fact that extreme poverty accumulates overwhelmingly in the younger productive ages, which are also facing the highest unemployment rates. As for older people, for example those over 65, even low pensions seem to become a safety net against extreme poverty,” said diaNEOsis Research Director Kyriakos Pierrakakis.
