Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos has said the government’s poverty reduction goals will remain the same despite revised poverty figures.
The Department of National Planning announced the number of Colombians living below the poverty line dropped from 45.5% to 40.2% due to new assessment methods that take into account access to basic necessities like health, education, and food.
In response, Santos said this would not alter the overall goal of an 8% reduction in poverty. Whereas before this would have resulted in a target of 37.5% of people living below the poverty line, the target is now 30.2%.
Speaking before the international seminar “Poverty Reduction and Promotion of Equality and Social Mobility in Colombia”, on Wednesday Santos said, “I believe that all the action of the state, all the action of every official, should in one way or another be directed towards reaching this goal of reducing poverty.”
He added Colombia could no longer carry the shame of being one of the countries with the highest poverty and inequality ratings in the world.