LIMA, Oct 10 (NNN-TELESUR) — Poverty in Peru could increase by 30 percent in 2020, the Minister of Development and Social Inclusion Patricia Donayre reported.
“We cannot know that exact number yet, but it is estimated that there is an increase in poverty, until the end of the year, of between 10 to 30 percent,” the official explained to local media outlets.
The forecast is also supported by the National Household Survey and Permanent Employment Survey, which has predicted that poverty could reach the highest level in a decade, as 3 million people are at risk of becoming poor amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
To tackle the crisis, the government announced a second “Universal Family Bonus” as an aid package distributed from Oct 10. The program to reach 8.4 million homes and about 21 million Peruvians.
However, the authorities forecast that in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, inequality in the country could return to the levels reported in 2010 and 2011. Likewise, the middle class is expected to reduce from 40.7 percent in 2019 to 34.2 percent in 2020. — NNN-TELESUR
