The number of poor people in Egypt in 2015 stood at 27.8 percent of the overall population, comparing to 25.2 percent in 2010-2011, according to data released on Sunday by the government statistics agency. The Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) issued a statement on the occasion of the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, which falls on October 17 each year. CAPMAS said that 5.3 percent of the population were living in extreme poverty in 2015, due in part to soaring prices of food commodities. The average poverty line in 2015 was set at LE322 per person per month, whereas the relative poverty line was set at LE482. CAPMAS said that uin 2015 poverty stood at 40 percent among the illiterate and 7 percent among university graduates.

Source: Egypt Independent October 17, 2016 08:37 UTC