«Basic facts on Poverty in Greece and the Pilot Minimum Income Scheme» Maria Marinakou, Ioanna Pertsinidou, Dimitra Soulele EMIN Coordination Team

Transcription

1 «Basic facts on Poverty in Greece and the Pilot Minimum Income Scheme» Maria Marinakou, Ioanna Pertsinidou, Dimitra Soulele EMIN Coordination Team Athens,

2 In Greece, 2.5 million people are below the threshold of relative poverty by the medium household income (60%). Overall, more than 1/3 of the population (11 m), 3.8 million people are at risk of poverty due to material deprivation and unemployment. Poverty in Greece_1 Based on the data of the National Statistical Agency ( ELSTAT July and September 2014 referring to levels at ): Greece is among the group of countries with the highest poverty (23.1%) Greece is on the fourth place among the 28 countries with the highest proportion of people at risk of poverty and social exclusion (34.6%) behind Bulgaria (49.3%), Romania (41.7%) and Latvia (36, 2%). In other EU countries, which have been implicated in Memoranda with the Troika, at risk of poverty and social exclusion is 29,4% in Ireland (2011), 27.1% in Cyprus and 25.3% in Portugal (2012). For the other Southern member Spain, is 28,2%.

3 Poverty in Greece_2

4 EU 2020 poverty indicators (ELSTAT 2014) 4

5 Poverty in Greece_2 Based on the index on relative the poverty which measures the percentage of population with income below 60% of median equivalent disposable income, in 2013 the poverty line was 432 euros a month for one person and 908 euros for a family of four. Based on the index referred to extreme poverty and can be determined by the cost of the basic basket of goods for a minimum level of decent living, for Attica in 2013 for a household without expenses such as mortgage or rent, is 233 euros per person and 684 euros for a family of four. (cited in M.Matsanganis (2014), "Poverty and Public Policy in Greece in Crisis") Child poverty in 2012 was 26.5% Th. Mitrakos (2014), "Fiscal consolidation: The current experience of the economic crisis" 31,3% reduction in households with central heating ( ), ELSTAT, 2014

6 Percentage of poverty in households with low work intensity with or without dependent children Comparison of EU-27and 15 and Greece. Greece in light blue with and in light brown without dependent children Source : EUROSTAT, 2013, M. Hletsos. November 2013, ΕΙΕΑΔ

7 Poverty in Greece_3 Based on the Strategy "Europe 2020" the Greek National Reform Plan submitted by the Greek government in 2012 targeted that until ,000 people of whom 100,000 children, will get out of poverty! Source: European Commission (2013) 7

8 Poverty in Greece_4 The percentage of people who say they can not afford basic food costs has doubled since 2009 (ELSTAT, 2014) It is estimated that more than young people, mainly university graduates, have emigrated since

9 Poverty and Unemployment, ELTAT 2014 During the second quarter of 2014 the unemployment rate was 26.6%, versus 27.8% in the previous quarter and 27.3% in the corresponding quarter of The number of unemployed reached 1,280,101 now hitting also heads of households, ie. working men in the productive age. Unemployment among young people aged reached 52%, while many workless households are lacking basic amenities. At the same time there was a dramatic decrease in earnings, and the minimum wage is now below the level of

10 Medium monthly household spending _Long term uneployed. 10

11 Greek Pilot Minimum Income Scheme_1 Minimum Guaranteed Income_ pilot scheme Based on the 4093 Law of 2012 the introduction of the minimum income in Greece aims to create a safety net for those who are at risk of extreme poverty by meeting basic living needs in the form of financial assistance and services (social support, activation ). This was part of the 2 nd Memorandum agreed with Troika and voted in the Greek parliament in the Medium Term Fiscal Strategy Law 4093/12 (ΦΕΚ 222 Α/ )

12 Greek Pilot Minimum Quarandeed Income Scheme_2 13 municipalities will implement the pilot scheme. We have no information on the initial number of beneficiaries (for the pilot). The cost is estimated at 30 million The full implementation is expected to reach 700,000 people at extreme poverty (around 7% of the total population), at a total cost of 850 million to 1 billion. It will be extended throughout the country in Existing benefits will be merged with the guaranteed minimum income scheme Source: Ministerial Press Conference,

13 Beneficiaries- Benefit levels according to household composition 13

14 Additional in kind Provisions These provisions are to be additionally given to MGI beneficiaries* Heating Allowance Reduced costs for electricity bills Health coverage Employment oriented training programs Social Care programs for homeless The payment of the Guaranteed Minimum Income will be suspended if the holder is away from Greece more than two months, unless the removal is due to health reasons or if the beneficiary refuses to work in a particular job by the Employment Agency. * Media Announcements, Sep-Oct 2014

15 Source: European Commission (2013). Social Europe. Current challenges and the way forward. Annual Report at the Social Protection Committee, Brussels. Challenges for the MIS in Greece_1 Lack of a comprehensive system of social care (fragmentation). Social policy measures mainly characterized by "emergency" without evidence based planning. This leads to the concept of social welfare "as a crisis management system." Lack of synergies Operational challenges The table refers to the percentage of impact to poverty reduction after social transfers. Comparison with EU 27, EU15, Greece, Spain, Italy, Portugal

16 Challenges for the MIS in Greece_2 Targeting only extreme poverty, leaves a huge percentage of the population that is either on poverty or at risk of poverty uncovered. (only 7% of the population at extreme poverty will be covered in the full implementation of the scheme). For the working poor (Greece is well above the EU average), coverage is non-existent, the same applies for the huge number of indebted households. In recent years the local government reform, the Kallikratis program, transferred responsibilities for implementing social policies to local authorities, but without the necessary financial resources and with declining staff levels. _ The budget cuts under the austerity measures had a profound impact on the ability of the LA to provide social services despite the increasing demand _ Reduction of human resources in the LA, massive early retirements. The crisis had a significant impact in reducing capacity of the civil society organizations For further analysis on the challenges and EAPN Greece positions see the attached Press Release