South African Poverty Rate Drops as Government Expands Welfare
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South Africa’s poverty rate fell 11 percentage points in the two years through 2011 as the government expanded welfare payments, the statistics agency said.
About 23 million people, or 45.5 percent of the population, live in poverty, defined as those receiving a monthly income of 620 rand ($58) or less, Pretoria-based Statistics South Africa said in a report on its website. That’s down from 27.8 million, or 56.8 percent, in 2009.