Argentina has recently become one of the countries with the lowest wages in Latin America, despite also being one of the most expensive in the world. Inflation and unemployment continue to erode the purchasing power of workers, exacerbated by the economic adjustments made to accumulate dollars for the repayment of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). This situation disproportionately affects the majority, while large businesses continue to earn substantial profits.
According to data from 2023 by the Universidad Católica Argentina (UCA), 63% of Argentine children and adolescents live in poverty, with 16.2% in extreme poverty, the highest rate since 2010. UNICEF’s campaign, “Hunger Does Not Have a Happy Ending,” highlights that every night, one million children in Argentina go to bed hungry. This crisis demands urgent solutions to prevent further deterioration of living standards.
UNICEF’s institutional document, #VoteForChildren, advocates for the implementation of economic, labor, and social protection policies to eradicate extreme poverty among children. The aim is to strengthen the social protection system and ensure adequate budgetary resources for child welfare in education, health, housing, infrastructure, and care.
The sensation of hunger can be likened to the aggression of a hungry dog; this is the reality for millions in Argentina. In May 2019, it was necessary to have at least $3,911.58 to avoid extreme poverty, defined as the inability to cover basic food needs. A recent report by the Fundación para el Desarrollo Global reveals that 65% of Argentinians cannot afford the basic food basket, significantly exceeding official figures from INDEC. Eduardo Coria Lahoz, who led the study, emphasizes the critical economic situation. The foundation provides monthly updates on income, inflation, and poverty data, offering a more current perspective than the biannual reports from INDEC.
In March, INDEC reported a poverty rate of 41% based on data from December 2023. However, the foundation’s report from June 30, 2024, indicates that poverty has likely risen to around 60%, a dramatic and unprecedented level in Argentina’s history. This means that 2 out of 3 people are now living below the poverty line.
Eduardo highlights that the distribution of income in Argentina is highly unequal, as shown by the Lawrence Curve, which measures income distribution across different segments of the population. Ideally, each decile of the population would receive 10% of the economy’s income. However, in reality, the poorest 10%, earning less than $224,000 by June 30, 2024, receive only 0.4% of the nation’s income, a stark reflection of social injustice. This structural problem has persisted for two decades and even the IMF has urged Argentina not to forget its most vulnerable citizens.
The Catholic University in Argentina (UCA) has developed a multidimensional poverty index that considers six dimensions of rights: food, sanitation, housing, health, information, and education/stimulation. In 2023, 56.3% of children and adolescents were classified as multidimensionally poor according to this index.
During the years Argentina faces significant challenges in generating sustained economic growth within a highly segmented social structure, with increasing levels of poverty across income, social integration, and human development resources. The middle class is barely surviving, and the lower class continues to expand, highlighting the urgent need for comprehensive economic and social reforms.
In the broader picture, it is also negative. The Social Panorama of Latin America and the Caribbean, an annual publication by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), highlights that in Argentina, income from labor is distributed more unequally than total income. The richest decile captures 2.7 times more of the economic returns on labor than the poorest four deciles combined, showing greater inequality compared to other Latin American countries like Colombia, El Salvador, Peru, and Uruguay. This severe income disparity further underscores the urgency for policy changes to address the growing economic divide.
Poverty levels will likely continue to rise, deepening economic disparities and pushing even more people into extreme hardship. The struggle for basic needs could become insurmountable for many, leading to increased social unrest, higher crime rates, and a deterioration in public health and education systems. The long-term consequences could include a loss of human capital, a weakened economy, and a society increasingly divided by inequality. Immediate action is crucial