17 October– International Day for the Eradication of Poverty
In 2020, 4,622,000 Belgians were unable to save during a typical month. This corresponds to 40.8% of the population. 32.8% of Belgians could barely make ends meet with their monthly income, 6.1% had to use available savings and 1.9% had to borrow money. This is according to new results published by Statbel, the Belgian statistical office, on the occasion of the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. The figures come from the 2020 survey on income and living conditions (EU-SILC), in which more than 7,000 Belgian households were questioned about their indebtedness and standard of living.
Saving up is not something everyone can take for granted
In 2020, 59.2% of Belgians were able to save during a typical month. In Flanders, 68.1% were able to save. This figure drops to 50.4% in Brussels and 46.1% in Wallonia.
However, the picture is quite different when we look at the situation of the 18.9% of Belgians who are considered to be at risk of poverty or social exclusion (AROPE) and the others.
22.1% of Belgians at risk of poverty or social exclusion (AROPE) were able to save, while 60.9% just about managed to make ends meet, 10.9% even had to use savings and 6.1% had to borrow to make ends meet.
Of the fellow Belgians who were not at risk of poverty or social exclusion, 67.9% were able to save, 26.3% were just getting by, 4.9% needed savings, and another 0.9% had to borrow.
More than one in three households cannot survive long on savings
The Statbel survey also asked households about the hypothetical situation in which their household would have no income, and would therefore have to draw on their savings. 40.3% of Belgians are unable to continue living with to the same standard of living for more than three months. 21% can sustain the same standard of living between 3 and 6 months, 13.1% say they can continue for 6 to 12 months with their savings and another 25.7% can sustain the same standard of living for more than a year with savings.
Here, too, are regional differences: 57.6% and 55.6% of the inhabitants of Brussels and Wallonia respectively cannot rely on their savings for more than three months. In Flanders, this share is limited to 28.6%.
The margin is the least wide among Belgians who are unemployed, where 72.8% indicate that they will not be able to continue living with the same standard of living for more than three months. Among Belgians living in a single-parent family, the proportion is 70.6%, among renters it is 69.2% and among low-skilled people 52.5%.
Belgians who belong to the risk group for poverty or social exclusion clearly have less margin: 74.6% would not be able to continue with the same standard of living for three months, 11.3% would manage between 3 and 6 months, 5.3% between 6 and 12 months and 8.8% would be able to sustain the same standard of living for more than a year.
Of the population not in this risk group, still 32.2% would be able to bridge less than three months, 23.2% between 3 and 6 months, 14.9% between 6 and 12 months and 28.4% more than 12 months.
To consult all the results of this module : EU-SILC Module Indebtedness and standard of living 2020 (xlsx)