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Poverty in Turkey

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Turkey made steady progress in reducing poverty from the early 2000s to the mid-2010s.[1][2]

Definitions

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The Turkish Statistical Institute publishes rates of poverty at 40%, 50%, 60% and 70% of median equivalised household disposable income.[3] UNICEF used the above 60% figure to estimate that over a third of children were poor on average 2019 to 2021.[4] The World Bank’s poverty line for middle-income countries is $5.50 a day (in 2011 dollars).[5]

Rate of poverty

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The 2023 EU report on the country said "Türkiye still lacks a dedicated poverty reduction strategy. Sustained price increases further posed the risk of poverty for the unemployed and wage labourers in precarious jobs. The poverty rate reached 14.4%, up from 13.8% in 2021. The severe-material-deprivation rate reached 28.4% in 2022 (2021: 27.2%). The child poverty rate for 2022 was particularly high at 41.6%. In 2022, social assistance payments amounted to TRY 151.9 billion, or 1.01% of GDP. Türkiye has fragmented benefits at local and national level, and it still lacks a general minimum income scheme."[6]

Causes of poverty

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  • Female labor force participation was estimated by Turkstat as 30.4% in 2022, less than half that of men.[7] Gender inequalities persist in access to economic opportunities and the female labor participation remains very low.[8] Turkey ranked 130 out of 145 countries in the Global Gender Gap rankings.[8] Female participation in the workplace has been increasing as a percentage and are forecasted to increase in a sustained way as Turkey transitions towards a high-income economy.[8]
  • Low productivity in the agriculture sector. Agriculture in Turkey employs about 20% of the working population with a very low[9] labor productivity, which translates into limited[10] earnings potential.[11] While the Turkish agriculture remains the largest producer of hazelnut, cherry and apricot in the world, the average size of farms at 2 ha is very low and discourages investment opportunities.[11]
  • Low national savings rate and low FDI. Having a very low domestic savings rate, Turkey is dependent on capital inflows to finance its structural current account deficit.[12] Despite its dependence on outside financing, Turkey attracts very little FDI—on average US$12.75 billion per year during 2003–2015.[12]
  • Exposure to natural disasters. Over 2 million Turks and more than 6% of Turkey's GDP are exposed to disasters at any given year—ranking 9th globally[13] with respect to GDP exposure to earthquakes—because of Turkey's high risk of earthquakes, flooding and forest fires. [14]
  • Monetary policy. Most economists say that low interest rates in the early 2020s raised inflation.[5] Poorer people have suffered more inflation.[15]


Poverty alleviation measures

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  • Establishment of universal health coverage in 2003.
  • Seismic risk reduction program. Turkey pioneered a seismic mitigation and emergency preparedness project that has been a model internationally. The program—which started in 2006—addresses the vulnerability of public buildings through creating development standards and third-party review.[13]
  • Turkey's risk insurance scheme for private property—established in 1999—is considered to be a proactive and world-class example that other countries imitate.[16] However, the insurance program does not have differentiating tariffs that could provide incentives for disaster-resistant construction.[16]
  • Islamic charity.[17]
Gecekondu in the city of Samsun: poor people may be exposed to more air pollution in Turkey[18][19]

See also

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Refugees of the Syrian civil war in Turkey

References

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  1. ^ "Poverty & Equity Brief" (PDF).
  2. ^ "Turkey TR: Poverty Headcount Ratio at National Poverty Lines: % of Population | Economic Indicators | CEIC". www.ceicdata.com. Retrieved 2023-12-26.
  3. ^ "Poverty and Living Conditions Statistics, 2022". Turkstat. Retrieved 2023-12-23.
  4. ^ "More than 1 in 5 children live in poverty in 40 of the world's richest countries". www.unicef.org. Retrieved 2023-12-26.
  5. ^ a b "The Turkish economy is in pressing need of reform and repair". The Economist.
  6. ^ "Türkiye Report 2023 - European Commission". neighbourhood-enlargement.ec.europa.eu. Retrieved 2023-12-29.
  7. ^ "Labour Force Statistics, 2022". data.tuik.gov.tr. Retrieved 2023-12-26.
  8. ^ a b c Cuberes, D., and Marc Teignier. “How Costly Are Labor Gender Gaps? Estimates for the Balkans and Turkey.” Policy Research Working Paper Series 7319, World Bank, Washington, DC. 2015.
  9. ^ Kasnakoglu, Haluk and Erol H. Cakmak. “Agriculture and Poverty in Turkey: Issues, Challenges, Prospects”. SCD Background Paper. Turkey. 2016.
  10. ^ Hohberg, M. and J Lay. 2015. “The impact of minimum wages on informal and formal labor market outcomes: evidence from Indonesia”. IZA Journal of Labor & Development, 4 (1), pp. 1–25.
  11. ^ a b Bozoghu, M., and V. Ceyhan. 2007. “Measuring the technical efficiency and exploring the inefficiency determinants of vegetable farms in Samsun, Turkey”. Agricultural System. Vol 94: 2007 pp. 649-656.
  12. ^ a b Creating Good Jobs. Forthcoming. Washington, DC: World Bank.
  13. ^ a b Hentschel, J., Meltem Aran, Raif Can, Francisco Ferreira, Jeremie Gignoux, and Arzu Uraz. Life Chances in Turkey: Expanding Opportunities for the Next Generation. World Bank. 2010.
  14. ^ Cuevas, Facundo, and A. Acar. “Poverty Measurement in Turkey: A Review of Data, Methods, and Challenges”. Working Paper, World Bank, Washington, DC. 2016.
  15. ^ https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/700111638283851455/pdf/Getting-Real-The-Uneven-Burden-of-Inflation-across-Households-in-Turkey.pdf. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  16. ^ a b Ministry of Forestry and Water Affairs. “Assessment of Climate Change Impact on Water Resources”. General Directorate of Water Management, Turkey. 2016.
  17. ^ "The Muslim Social: Neoliberalism, Charity, and Poverty in Turkey (Contemporary Issues in the Middle East) | mitpressbookstore". mitpressbookstore.mit.edu. 2024-03-15. Retrieved 2023-12-26.
  18. ^ Bayar, Ayse Aylin; Degirmenci, Serkan; Kayalica, M. Ozgur; Bayar, Ayse Aylin; Degirmenci, Serkan; Kayalica, M. Ozgur (June 2015). "Does Inequality Matter Air Pollution and Health Relationship?: The Turkish Case". EconoQuantum. 12 (1): 7–30. doi:10.18381/eq.v12i1.4851. ISSN 1870-6622.
  19. ^ "At least 42,000 people die from air pollution in Turkey in 2021". Gazete Duvar (in Turkish). 2023-03-24. Retrieved 2023-12-23.
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