ROME (ITALPRESS) – In 2024, 23.1 percent of the population is at risk of poverty or social exclusion (in 2023 it was 22.8 percent), that is, they are in at least one of the following three conditions: at risk of poverty, in severe material and social deprivation or low work intensity. This is announced by Istat in its report on living conditions and household income. The share of individuals at risk of poverty remains at the same value as in 2023 (18.9 percent), and the share of those in severe material and social deprivation also remains almost unchanged (4.6 percent compared to 4.7 percent); there is a slight increase in the share of individuals living in low-labor-intensive households (9.2 percent and 8.9 percent in the previous year). In 2023, average annual household income (€37,511) increases in nominal terms (+4.2%) and decreases in real terms (-1.6%). Moreover, in 2023, the amount of income received by the wealthiest households is 5.5 times that received by the poorest households (up from 5.3 in 2022).
Data on living conditions in 2024 show a largely unchanged picture from the previous year, Istat highlights. The population at risk of poverty or social exclusion (composite indicator Europe 2030) in 2024 is 23.1 percent (it was 22.8 percent in 2023), totaling about 13 million 525 thousand people. Specifically, individuals living in households whose net equivalent income in the previous year (without imputed or in-kind components) is less than 60 percent of the median income are considered at risk of poverty. In 2024, 18.9 percent (the same value recorded in 2023) of people residing in Italy (living in households with a net equivalised income of less than €12,363) are at risk of poverty, a total of about 11 million individuals. Substantially stable and equal to 4.6 percent (it was 4.7 percent in 2023) is the share of the population in conditions of severe material and social deprivation (over 2 million 710 thousand individuals), that is, the share of those who, in 2024, present at least 7 signs of deprivation out of the 13 identified by the new Europe 2030 indicator; these are signs referring to the presence of economic difficulties such as not being able to face unexpected expenses, not being able to afford an adequate meal or being in arrears with rent or mortgage, etc.
Individuals living in low-labor-intensity households in 2024 (i.e., with members aged 18-64 who worked less than one-fifth of the time during 2023) are 9.2 percent (they were 8.9 percent in 2023), amounting to about 3.873 million people. The share of individuals in labor-intensive households increases between 2023 and 2024 among single people under the age of 35 (15.9 percent compared to 14.1 percent in 2023) and, especially, among single parents, who have a share more than double the national average (19.5 percent compared to 15.2 percent in 2023). At the territorial level, in 2024, the Northeast is confirmed as the distribution with the lowest incidence of risk of poverty or social exclusion (11.2%, was 11.0% in 2023) and the South as the area of the country with the highest percentage (39.2%, was 39.0% in 2023).
In 2024, the incidence of the risk of poverty or social exclusion is confirmed to be lower for those living in couples without children. Compared to 2023, the indicator increases for those living in households with five members and more (33.5 percent compared to 30.7 percent in 2023) and, especially, for those living in couples with at least three children (34.8 percent compared to 32 percent in 2023). Growth is also registered for single parents (32.1 percent compared to 29.2 percent), due to the more widespread condition of low work intensity (also linked to reconciliation problems). For couples with one or two children, the risk of poverty or social exclusion remains low (around 19 percent) and well below the national average (23.1 percent). Moreover, in 2024, the risk of poverty or exclusion increases for the elderly aged 65 and older living alone (29.5 percent from 27.2 percent in 2023). The risk of poverty or social exclusion reaches 33.1 percent (it was 31.6 percent in 2023) among those who can rely mainly on income from pensions and/or public transfers, decreases, however, for those living in households where the main source of income is employment (14.8 percent from 15.8 percent in 2023), and remains stable for those whose main source of income is self-employment (22.7 percent and 22.3 percent in 2023).
Finally, the risk of poverty or social exclusion decreases for individuals in households with at least one foreign national (37.5 percent, down from 40.1 percent in the previous year) and increases slightly for members of Italian-only households (21.2 percent compared to 20.7 percent in 2023). Also according to Istat, in 2023, households residing in Italy are estimated to have received a net income averaging 37,511 euros, about 3,125 euros per month. However, the growth in household incomes in nominal terms (+4.2 percent over 2022) did not keep pace with the inflation observed during 2023 (+5.9 percent average annual change in the Harmonized Index of Consumer Prices, HICP), leading to a decline in household incomes in real terms (-1.6 percent) for the second consecutive year. The decline in real incomes is particularly intense in the Northeast (-4.6 percent) and the Center (-2.7 percent), compared with a slight reduction observed in the South (-0.6 percent) and weak growth in the Northwest (+0.6 percent).
Compared to 2007, the overall contraction of household income in real terms averaged -8.7% (-13.2% in the Center, -11.0% in the South, -7.3% in the Northeast and -4.4% in the Northwest). In addition, the decline in income was particularly intense for households whose main source of income is self-employment (-17.5%) or salaried (-11.0%), while for households whose income consists mainly of pensions and government transfers there is an increase of 5.5%. Since the income distribution is skewed, the majority of households received income below the median amount. Calculating the median value, which is the income level that divides the number of households into two equal parts, it is observed that 50 percent of the households residing in Italy have an income of no more than 30,039 euros (2,503 euros per month), with a 4 percent growth in nominal terms compared to 2022 (28,865 euros, 2,405 euros per month).
Households in the Northeast have the highest median income (34,772 euros), followed by those in the Northwest (the median level is 5 percent lower than in the Northeast), the Center (-8 percent) and the South (-28 percent). The median income also varies significantly by family type: couples with children reach the highest values with 46,786 euros (about 3,900 euros per month), being in most cases families with two or more recipients, but couples with three or more children receive a median income (44,993 euros) lower than both that observed for couples with two children (48,084 euros) and that observed for couples with one child (45,523 euros). Single-parent families have a median income of 31,451 euros, and elderly people living alone in 50 percent of cases do not exceed the threshold of 17,681 euros (1,473 euros monthly). Childless couples receive a significantly lower median income if the reference person is elderly (31,975 versus 40,447 euros for younger childless couples). The median income level of families with foreigners is 5,400 euros lower than that of families composed only of Italians. Relative differences become more pronounced moving from the North to the South, where the median income of households with at least one foreigner is 62 percent of that of Italian-only households.
– ISTAT press office photo –
(ITALPRESS).
