site.bta22% of Bulgarians Live Below Poverty Line in 2018

April 30 (BTA) - In 2018, the poverty line in Bulgaria
was 351.11 leva per household member per month, the National
Statistical Institute reported on Tuesday. A total of 1,550,800
people, or 22 per cent of the country's population, lived below
that level. The poverty line remained the same as in 2017, while
 the share of people who lived below it decreased by 1.4
percentage points.

In 2018, the share of poor people was largest among the
unemployed (56.1 per cent), which is a lasting trend. The share
of poor people among working people aged 18 to 64 was 10.1 per
cent, the same as in 2017.

Some 70 per cent of children whose parents had elementary or no
education were living in poverty in 2018. About 4.6 per cent of
kids whose parents had higher education were at risk of poverty.
 The risk was five times higher in families with parents with
secondary education.

The lowest poverty line in 2018 was registered in the regions of
 Pazardjik and Montana, at 239 leva and 240 leva per month,
respectively, and the highest, in Sofia City (which is a
separate administrative region), at 513 leva per month, followed
 by the regions of Stara Zagora (403 leva) and Varna (383 leva).

The share of those who lived below the poverty line was highest
in the regions of Montana and Veliko Turnovo (both 26.2 per
cent), Lovech (25.8 per cent) and Sliven (25.5 per cent). The
share was lowest in Pernik (11.2 per cent), Kyustendil and
Razgrad (both 14.7 per cent), and Rousse (14.9 per cent). RY/VE