Canadian Poverty Rate Reaches A Historic Number

Published March 8, 2019 at 12:38 am

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Every country has its own sets of issues and challenges.

Canada, however, is doing the best it possibly can when it comes to poverty.

According to the 2017 Canadian Income Survey released by Statistics Canada, Canada has met its goal of reducing poverty by 20 per cent three years ahead of schedule.

For example, a total of 3.4 million Canadians, representing 9.5 percent of the population, lived in poverty in 2017, which was down from 10.6 percent in 2016.

The system used to manage and ultimately reduce the plaguing issue was the Poverty Reduction Strategy, the results of which mean that Canada has reached the lowest poverty rate its ever had before.

Based on Canada’s Official Poverty Line, which used 2017’s poverty rate of 9.5 per cent as a metric, the numbers confirm the historic low, which only exemplifies the Government of Canada’s ultimate goal of cutting poverty in half by the year 2030.

“Fewer Canadians than ever are living in poverty and more are joining the middle class,” said Minister of Families, Children and Social Development Jean-Yves Duclos. “However, we know there is much more to do.”

“That is why we remain committed to cutting poverty in half by 2030 by building a diverse, prosperous and truly inclusive country where all Canadians can realize their full potential,” he said.

With the assistance of programs such as the Canada Child Benefit and the Guaranteed Income Supplement, 825,000 fewer Canadians were living in poverty in 2017 than they were in 2015.

More Canadians are expected to be lifted out of poverty as further programs and governmental investments are put into motion in the following years.

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