site.bta26.9% of Bulgarian Children under 17 Are at Risk of Poverty

In 2023, 26.9% of children under the age of 17 in Bulgaria were at risk of poverty, which was 1 percentage point more than in 2022, according to data from the National Statistical Institute (NSI). For a second year in a row, NSI and UNICEF Bulgaria mark together International Children's Day, June 1, and put out a publication titled "Children in Bulgaria".

Educational attainment and parents' occupations are important factors for children's future development. A higher level of education ensures wider access to the labour market and, consequently, higher wages. In 2023, eight out of ten children (80.3%) whose parents have primary education or no education at all live in poverty. 

Approximately 19 times fewer, or 4.3%, are children whose parents have a college education and live at risk of poverty. The risk of poverty for children in households with parents with a high school education is four times higher than for children with parents with a college education.

Nearly a quarter of children (25.9%) cannot afford a holiday away from home for at least one week a year (including holiday with family, visiting relatives, friends, organized breaks from school, etc.). Outdoor play equipment (bicycle, roller skates, skates, etc.) is unaffordable for 22.8%, while regular activities such as swimming, playing a musical instrument, participating in youth organizations, etc. are unaffordable for 19.7%. 

In 2023, Bulgarian households spent BGN 10,044 on average per person, which is 19.7% more than in 2022. Over the same period, the annual total expenditure per person on average per household with children was BGN 8,499, which is 17.4% more compared to the previous year. Over the last ten years (2014 - 2023), the total expenditure per person in a household with children has increased 2.1 times (starting at BGN 3,994 in 2014).

As of the end of 2023, the number of children under 17 in Bulgaria was 1,104,198, or 17.1% of the total population. A total of 827,404 children (17.5%) live in urban areas and 276,794 or 16.2%  in rural areas. 

In 2023, a total of 15,227 Bulgarians changed their current address to a foreign country, and 1,265 of them were children under 17. The most preferred destinations for parents of young emigrants were Germany (20.6%), followed by the United Kingdom (17.9%) and France (10.2%).