A recent report from Germany has revealed that some 13 million Germans are at the risk of poverty, Press TV reports.
According to a report published by the Federal Statistical Office on October 27, 16.1 percent of Germany’s population is considered to be at the risk of poverty.
“It’s shocking for one of the richest countries in the whole world; it is a shame that we don’t have structures to take care of these people,” a German citizen told Press TV correspondent in Berlin.
People whose income is less than 60 percent of the population’s median income are mostly at risk.
“We always have to take into consideration that this poverty rate is a relative rate. It means that people who receive less than 60 percent of the middle income level — doesn’t matter if they are employed or receive public benefits — are considered poor,” Klaus Heiner Rohl of the Cologne Institute for Economic Research told Press TV correspondent.
Germany’s poverty threshold starts at 2,056 euros a month for a family with two children under the age of 14, and 979 euros a month for a single household.
“There are a few simple means to do something noticeable against poverty in this country. One of them is a statutory minimum wage. We are very happy that there is a first step in introducing a statutory minimum wage, but for us the amount is insufficient. We think that 10 euros per hour is the minimum to avoid poverty,” Matthias Hohn, a German Left Party member, told Press TV correspondent.
Over the last year, the percentage of German children under the age of 15 living in poverty rose to 15.7 percent, and 1.64 million children in Germany are dependent on state welfare.