Coral Gables Watch

Past Income Gains are Lost in Latin America–Poverty Rising Rapidly

More than 20 million people were pushed into poverty during pandemic-plagued 2020 across Latin America and the Caribbean, the U.N. economic agency for the region reported Thursday. Poverty as a whole rose to afflict a total of 208 million people —33.7% from 30.5% of the population— in a year when the overall gross domestic product collapsed by 7.7%. Extreme poverty —those without the resources to cover basic food requirements— rose to encompass 78 million people, 12.5% of the region’s population, according to the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean. That’s the highest percentage in 20 years. Poverty as a whole rose to afflict a total of 208 million people —33.7% from 30.5% of the population— in a year when the overall gross domestic product collapsed by 7.7%. The report said the situation would have been worse without household subsidy programs enacted by many governments to cushion the blow for some 84 million households.

UN Finds Soaring Poverty in Virus-Hit Latin America Region