Greek children are among the highest group at risk of poverty and social exclusion in Europe according to the latest data from Eurostat, with Greece (30%+) coming in 4th after Romania, Spain and Bulgaria.
Among the EU Member States in 2021, the highest shares of children at risk of poverty or social exclusion were recorded in Romania (41.5%), Spain (33.4%) and Bulgaria (33.0%). On the other hand, the lowest shares were reported in Slovenia (11.0%), Finland (13.2%) and Czechia (13.3%).
Children who grow up in poverty or social exclusion encounter difficulties in doing well in school, enjoying good health and realising their full potential later in life. They also face a higher risk of becoming unemployed, poor and socially excluded as adults.
In 2021, 24.4% of children (aged less than 18 years old) in the EU were at risk of poverty or social exclusion compared with 21.1% of adults (aged 18 and over).
Children were at a higher risk of poverty or social exclusion compared with adults in 18 out of the 27 EU Member States. The largest gaps between the two age groups were recorded in Luxembourg (10.5 percentage points; pp), Romania (8.7 pp), Spain and Austria (both 6.8 pp).
On the contrary, adults were at a higher risk of poverty or social exclusion compared with children in 9 Member States (Latvia, Estonia, Denmark, Croatia, Slovenia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Finland and Poland). The largest gaps between the two age groups among these 9 countries were observed in Latvia (7.4 pp), Estonia (6.0 pp) and Denmark (4.0 pp).
