Composition of those at risk of poverty in different Member States

In all EU countries, women make up the majority of the population at risk of poverty: in the Baltic States and Slovenia, the share of women at risk is as high as 57-59%. This is partly due to the larger number of women in the population (54%), though it is also a result of their higher risk of poverty. The larger share of women reflects their lower earnings and pensions (relative to men) and their greater life expectancy, which also makes them more likely to live alone after being widowed.

Figure 10: Gender composition of those at risk of poverty, 2008 income year

As the demographic composition of countries differs significantly, we need to take account of these differences when interpreting the composition of the poor as such. The age structure of the population at risk of poverty suggests a relatively high share of children at risk of poverty in Ireland, Hungary and Luxembourg. In Hungary and Luxembourg, the figures reflect the relatively high risk of poverty among children (21-22%) (compared to other age groups), whereas in Ireland they reflect the relatively high proportion of children in the population (26%). Note that in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia, Romania, Luxembourg, Malta and the Netherlands, the share of children within the poor population is 9-10% higher than the demographic share of children. This is due to the comparatively high poverty rate among children nationally.

In Denmark, Finland, France, the Netherlands and Sweden, young adults of between 18 and 24 make up a comparatively high share of the population that has poverty levels of income. In all of those countries, this is due to the high risk of poverty within this age group (20-34%) compared to other age groups. In these countries, the share of this age group within the population is at or below the EU average.

Most people below the at-risk-of-poverty threshold are of working age. This reflects their large weight within the total population, and if we make allowance for this fact, then we find that the share of working-age people is below their demographic share within the total population in all the countries.

There is a relatively high share of the elderly in Cyprus, Estonia and Latvia (some 30% or over), which is a consequence of the relatively high risk of poverty within this group (rather than a disproportionate number of older people in these countries). Cyprus is a clear outlier in the EU, with its low share of older people in the population (12%, versus the EU average of 17%). There are a number of other countries where older people are greatly over-represented among the poor population than their population share would suggest: Bulgaria, Finland and Slovenia.

This clearly highlights the fact that the age-specific profiles of poverty vary greatly across countries. National policies that aim to reduce the total number of the poor may prove to be effective if targeted primarily at these groups.

Figure 11: Age composition of those at risk of poverty, 2008 income year