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22.4% of Turkish families lived in extreme poverty in 2014: Study

This file photo shows members of a Turkish family in Kayrakalti village, western Turkey.

A recent official study has revealed that nearly 23 percent of families in Turkey lived in a state of extreme poverty in 2014.

According to the study, entitled “Statistics on Family” and carried out by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat), a total of 22.4 percent of Turkish households lived in poverty in 2014.

The survey further disclosed that 28.8 percent of households with a single parent and one or more dependent children lived below the poverty line during the same period.

Moreover, according to the report, poverty and unemployment were more prevalent in the southeastern and eastern parts of the country than in the central and western provinces.

Last month, Turkey’s Public Workers’ Labor Union set the hunger threshold in the country at 1,603 lira (593 US dollars) per month. The poverty line was also drawn at 2,076 lira (767 US dollars) for a single employed individual, while the figure was set at 4,219 lira (1,560 US dollars) for a family of four.

The latest numbers released by the Ankara-based MetroPOLL Strategic and Social Research Center show that 57 percent of the Turkish population believes that the country’s financial affairs are being mismanaged by the authorities.

This file photo shows Turkish lira banknotes.

The figure marks a sharp rise compared to the April 2014 survey, in which 44 percent of the respondents held the same opinion.

Last month, the Turkish lira hit another record low against the US dollar amid investors’ concerns about the country’s economic outlook and rising political instability ahead of the June 7 parliamentary elections.

The lira touched a low of 2.6740 against the dollar before recovering slightly to 2.6681.

Meanwhile, credit rating agency Moody’s has painted a gloomy picture for Turkey’s banking system due to the unfulfilled social promises of economic growth as well as the volatility of the lira.

MP/HJL/HRB


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