Despite social protections, COVID-19 exacerbated poverty in Spain

By Alyssa McMurtry

OVIEDO, Spain (AA) - A study published Friday by the European Anti Poverty Network (EAPN) revealed that around 380,000 more people were driven into poverty in Spain last year.

In total, 27.8% of the Spanish population was found to be at risk of poverty and social exclusion – fourth highest rate in the EU, after Romania, Bulgaria and Greece.

The study is the first comprehensive look at how the coronavirus pandemic affected poverty in Spain.

Although researchers say Spain’s social safety net protected 1.5 million people from falling into poverty during the pandemic, COVID-19 “aggravated” the trend of increasing economic hardship for the most vulnerable.

Overall, 44.9% of Spanish residents had some trouble making it to the end of the month in 2021, according to the report.

Before the war in Ukraine sent energy prices skyrocketing, 14.3% of Spain’s population could not afford the cost of adequately heating or cooling their homes.

One of the worst affected groups was single-parent households. The study found that 54.3% were at risk of poverty or social exclusion — up 4.5 percentage points from 2020 and the worst figure since the study began in 2014.

Another trend accelerated by the pandemic was the growing number of working poor.

“One out of every three people in poverty is employed,” said EAPN researcher Juan Carlos Llano.

Poverty among highly educated groups also shot up last year, the study found.

Within Spain, the economic differences remain stark between the north and south of the country. In the Basque Country, for instance, 16% of the population is at risk of poverty, whereas that figure shoots up to 38.7% in Andalusia and Extremadura.