World Bank: With Continued Russian Military Aggression, Nearly Two Million Ukrainians Are Below the Poverty Line

On Thursday, June 1, the World Bank reported that with the ongoing military aggression of Russia against Ukraine, the number of Ukrainians living below the poverty line has increased to 1.8 million. According to the report, due to the worsening economic conditions in Ukraine, nearly 29% of the population is now below the poverty line. Arup Banerji, the World Bank's regional director for Eastern Europe, stated that if Ukraine had not received significant foreign financial assistance for paying pensions, salaries for teachers, doctors, and other professions, the situation would have been much worse. He told Reuters, 'If international partners, especially the United States, had not mobilized resources specifically for these social costs in Ukraine, three million more Ukrainians would be in poverty.' The World Bank's report, based on a monthly phone survey of two thousand families, estimates that about 9 million Ukrainians lived in poverty last year. The total population of the country is currently around 32 million. The increase in poverty is attributed to a decline in employment, with more than one-fifth of adults who were working before the war losing their jobs. The report states that nearly one-quarter of Ukrainians surveyed last year did not have enough money to buy food, although increased economic growth and reduced inflation helped improve food security in the last months of the previous year. According to Arup Banerji, the approval of a new aid package for Ukraine after months of delay in the U.S. Congress was an extraordinary piece of news that helps ensure Ukraine's continued ability to make payments for salaries, pensions, and social assistance. The report indicates that 85 to 92 percent of health clinics in Ukraine were still fully operational last year, despite ongoing Russian attacks. According to the organization, at least 89 percent of children aged 6 to 18 also remained in school, and in areas with more conflict, 72 percent of students attend school. The World Bank official stated that Ukraine's biggest challenge remains ensuring security and ending the war. However, given the current critical conditions, the Ukrainian government has had 'great success' in managing the country's economy.