New official statistics on poverty in Iraq ... and a shocking number

Time: 12/30/2020 23:32:54
 
(Baghdad: Al Furat News) A spokesman for the Ministry of Planning, Abdul Zahra Al-Hindawi, confirmed, on Wednesday, that the poverty rate in Iraq reached about 30% during the year 2020, indicating that more than 12 million Iraqis are below the poverty line.

Al-Hindawi said in a press statement, that "poverty rates in Iraq increased during the year 2020 due to the Corona pandemic and its effects, which caused a major economic downturn witnessed in Iraq and other countries of the world," indicating that "this contraction caused the cessation of many economic activities and business, especially in the private sector." ".

He added, "We have a large percentage of Iraqis who depend on the private sector for their work, and consequently the living standards have decreased for quite a few of them." Poverty, in addition to the number of former Iraqis below the poverty line, which numbered 9 million and 900 thousand. "

Al-Hindawi explained that "these indicators were reached through a study conducted by the Ministry of Planning in cooperation with the World Bank and UNICEF last July," adding that "after life gradually returned to normal and many businesses returned to their activities, the initial indicators say that these percentages have decreased." .

Regarding poverty rates in the governorates, a spokesman for the Ministry of Planning indicated that "poverty levels at the provincial level rise in the southern regions by 30-35%, in the central governorates close to 20%, in Baghdad it reaches about 13%, and in the Kurdistan region it reaches about 12% ".

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