Eurostat: 'Romania makes significant progress in reducing risk of poverty and social exclusion'

However, while comparing the situation of 2017 to that one of 2008, the member states that scored the highest progress in reducing poverty and social exclusion risk were Poland (from 30.5 in 2008 down to 19.5 per cent in 2017, with a 11 percentage points difference) and Romania (from 44.2 per cent in 2008 down to 35.7 per cent in 2017, a difference of 8.5 percentage points). 

In 2017, 112.9 million people, or 25.5 per cent of the population, in the European Union (EU) were at risk of poverty or social exclusion. More than a third of the population was at risk of poverty or social exclusion in three member states: Bulgaria (38.9 per cent), Romania (35.7 per cent) and Greece (34.8 per cent). 

At the opposite end of the scale, the lowest shares of persons being at risk of poverty or social exclusion were recorded in the Czech Republic (12.2 per cent), Finland (15.7 per cent), Slovakia (16.3 per cent), the Netherlands (17.0 per cent), Slovenia and France (both 17.1 per cent) and Denmark (17.2 per cent). 

In exchange, in ten member states the at risk of poverty or social exclusion rate has grown since 2008 until 2017, with the highest increases being recorded in Greece (from 28.1 per cent in 2008 to 34.8 per cent in 2017, or +6.7 percentage points), Italy (+3.4 pp), Spain (+2.8 pp).

AGERPRES