Over one in four people in
Italy, or 28.3%, were at risk of poverty or social exclusion in
2014, Istat said on Monday.
The figure is steady with respect to that for 2013.
The national statistics agency said in a report that 19.4%
of people were at risk of poverty, 11.6% lived in seriously
deprived families and 12.1% were members of households of "low
work intensity".
It said the risk of poverty or social exclusion was much
higher in the less wealthy south, with a rate of 46.4% - an
improvement on 48% in 2013 - compared to 17.3% in the north and
22.8% in the centre.
The proportion of people in Italy enduring severe
deprivation fell for the second consecutive year in 2014,
dropping to 11.6% compared to 12.3% in 2013, Istat said.
The national statistics agency said this is the lowest
level since 2011.
It said the proportion of people unable to afford a meal
containing a significant amount of protein fell from 13.9% to
12.6%.
Those unable to afford a one-week holiday or an unexpected
expense of 800-euros dropped to 49.5% from 51% in 2013 in Italy,
which this year returned to positive growth in 2015 after years
of recession.
Consumers associations Federconsumatori and Adusbef
described the data as "extremely alarming", saying the number of
people living in deprivation was the stuff of the Third World.
"This is unacceptable for a country that calls itself
civilised," the associations said in a statement.
"The fact that almost 50% of Italians cannot afford to go
on holiday for a week means that we are worse off than in the
post-war period, when workers' families could go back to their
home towns when the factories closed in August and be with their
relatives".
Istat also said that half of Italian households had a net
income of 2,026 euros a month or less in 2013.
Farmers association Coldiretti said the figures showed
that the degree of poverty experienced by some is bound to
affect nutrition, even though the number unable to afford one
decent meal a day had dropped 25% in the last three years.
It said that data showed that some six million Italians do
not have enough money to feed themselves properly.
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