The number of impoverished Israelis has increased in 2021, according to the National Insurance Institute’s (NII) annual poverty report published on Thursday, as the poverty line was jerked up by a rising standard of living after a rough first year of the COVID-19 pandemic left many behind.
According to the report, 1.95 million poor people lived in Israel in 2021, including 853,800 children and 212,400 people at retirement age. For comparison, the number of people under the poverty line stood at 1,877,594 the year before.
On the other hand, the standard gross median income per capita, from which the poverty line is derived, increased moderately by 1.3%, and reached NIS 2,849 ($828).
Clearing government intervention through taxes and transfer fees, the standard median income per capita jumped by 7.9%.
According to the NII, a single person required NIS 3,561 ($1035) a month in 2021 to remain just above the poverty line, while a family of three would have needed an income of at least NIS 7,550 ($2,194) a month. A family of four will need around NIS 9,117 ($2,650).