Two million two hundred thousand children and minors live today on the poverty line in Germany. This is 24% of the total, i.e. almost one in four minors is at risk of poverty and social exclusion. The percentage is considered high even for European data.
Romania (41.5%) and Bulgaria (33.9%) currently record the highest percentage of youth poverty in Europe, while, on the contrary, the lowest percentages are shown by Slovenia (10.3%), the Czech Republic (13 .4%) and Denmark (13.8%).
The figures refer to 2022 and of course “poverty” for minors is judged by the parents’ income. Overall the number of children at risk of poverty has increased in Germany in recent years. But the same is happening in the rest of the European countries.
Poverty is dangerous to health, leads to social exclusion and limits a child’s ability to gain access to appropriate education.
How is “poverty” defined?
It is important to clarify, of course, that “poverty” is a relative measure and is not defined everywhere with the same income criteria in absolute terms. According to the generally accepted criteria of the Statistical Service, anyone who has less than 60% of the average income in the country they live in, as determined based on local data, is at risk of poverty.
For Germany this amounts to €1,250 (net) for an adult living alone and €2,625 for two adults with two children. This amount does not seem negligible, but it is also adjusted to the higher cost of living in Germany (rents, services, transport, etc.) compared to other countries.
A more detailed observation of the statistics leads to the conclusion that the poverty of minors is a function (and) of the educational level of the parents. In households where parents show low levels of vocational training, the average number of children living on the poverty line jumps to 38%. On the contrary, in households in which the parents have completed higher education or have post-graduate degrees, this percentage drops to 6.7%.
