Brazil saw a new record number of people living in poverty and extreme poverty in 2021. In all, almost one in three people in the country—29.4 percent of the population—lived in poverty until at least last year, and almost one in ten people—8.4 percent—struggled under extreme poverty.
The data can be found in the study Síntese de Indicadores Sociais: uma análise das condições de vida da população brasileira 2022 (“Synthesis of Social Indicators – an analysis of the living conditions of the Brazilian population 2022”), or SIS, released by official statistics agency IBGE.
Per the publication, until last year Brazil had 62.5 million people in poverty (daily income below $5.5) and 17.9 million in extreme poverty (daily income below $1.90, as defined by the World Bank). Both the absolute numbers and the percentages are the highest since the start of the time series in 2012.
The increase between 2020 and 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic, is also a record high. In that period, the contingent below the poverty line grew 22.7 percent, or 11.6 million people, and the group of people in extreme poverty expanded by 48.2 percent, or 5.8 million.
Kids under 14 are the biggest victims of poverty. Until last year, 46.2 percent of this portion of the population was below the poverty line, the highest level in the series.
Source: Agência Brasil