ASUNCION, Paraguay, March 27 (NNN-PRENSA LATINA) In Paraguay, 1,679,810 people currently live in conditions of total poverty, according to data from the closing of 2018, of the General Directorate of Statistics, Surveys and Censuses (DGEEC).
Although the agency estimated that, with respect to 2017, the figure decreased because 129,000 people left that condition and survive with less than 686,075 guaranies a month (about 111 dollars).
‘Extreme poverty,’ noted the entity, ‘affects 335,165 citizens, because they cannot cover the cost of basic food basket and subsist on less than 239,969 guaranies a month (about 38 dollars).
Thus, total poverty fell from 26.4 percent (2017) to 24.2 percent (2018): urban poverty stood at 17.8 percent and rural poverty at 34.6 percent.
According to the report, extreme poverty rose from 4.4 percent in 2017, to an average of 4.8 percent in 2018, and in the rural sector it stood at 10 percent, an increase of one percentage point over the previous year, while in urban areas, the level hardly changed from 1.5 percent to 1.6 percent.
According to the expert, the increase in the extreme poor segment is due to a fall in labour income, especially in the late 2018, and a rise in the basket of around 2.3 percent.
Specialists pointed out that income was affected by low productivity, linked to the drought, which affected rural production in several areas.– NNN-PRENSA LATINA
