One in ten Italians lives in absolute poverty, a record-breaking figure that shows no sign of decreasing. The number of people living in absolute poverty has risen steadily over the past decade, rising from 6.9% in 2014 to 9.7% of the population in 2023, equivalent to 5 million 694 thousand people (2 million 217 thousand families, 8.4% of all households). With 1 million 295 thousand poor children (13.8%), child poverty hit an all-time high, it was 13.4% in 2022. Unexpectedly, however, the number of poor households in northern Italy has doubled in the last decade (+97.2%), affecting almost one million households (from 506 thousand). At national level, the increase amounts to +42.8%. These are the findings of Caritas Italy’s 2024 Report on Poverty and Social Exclusion, entitled ”Fili d’erba nelle crepe”, presented today in Rome. The number of people receiving social assistance has increased by 41.6% in the last ten years and by 5.4% in 2023 compared to 2022, according to the Caritas Observatory of counselling and service centres, which confirms the figures published by Italy’s national statistics institute (ISTAT). Poverty affects 8% of the working population, it is linked to educational poverty, it has become chronic and is multidimensional – meaning that people are confronted with a multitude of problems. Caritas reports that the number of Italians benefiting from Italy’s two new national anti-poverty measures, which replaced the Citizenship Income scheme, has halved despite this dire situation, which requires extensive government intervention. Only 697,640 households were receiving the ‘social inclusion allowance’ (ADI), while
331,000 households were left without social benefits, many of them living in the north, in rented accommodation or in single-person households.
By contrast, the impact of vocational training and promotion was limited, with few participants and courses lasting three to four months. In view of the above, Caritas Italy calls for “broadening the scope” of these two measures, “simplifying access” and demands the re-establishment of “a permanent universal support system to prevent the exclusion of people living in absolute poverty” in the country.
Highest increase in the number of poor families in the north. The number of poor households in the northern regions of Italy is higher than that of the south and the islands put together. The number of poor households in the north has almost doubled (+97.2%) over the period 2014-2023. This figure is even more striking when compared with the rest of the country, registering an increase of 28.6% in the central regions and 12.1% in the south. There is still a higher proportion of poor in southern Italy (12 % versus 8.9 % in the north), but the gap seems to have narrowed considerably: only nine years ago, the share of poor people in southern Italy was more than twice as high compared to the north: 9.6% versus 4.2%.
Financial precariousness still affects 34% of Italians who grew up in disadvantaged families. Inherited poverty is a vicious cycle that affects 20% of European adults aged 25 to 59 who experienced financial hardship at the age of 14. In Italy, this figure now stands at 34%, evidence of a legacy that is a burden for the future. Only Romania and Bulgaria have recorded higher figures (Eurostat).
Working poor on the rise. The number of working poor is growing at an alarming rate. It concerns 8 per cent of all employed Italians (7.7 per cent in 2022). However, this figure drops to 2.8 per cent among managers, senior executives and white-collar workers, while it jumps to 16.5 per cent among blue-collar and assimilated workers (14.7 per cent in 2022).
Almost 270,000 people sought help from Caritas (+5.4%). In 2023, 269,689 people received support through the Caritas network’s 3,124 counselling centres and IT services distributed across 206 dioceses. This figure corresponds to approximately 12% of all households in absolute poverty, as recorded by ISTAT. The number of beneficiaries, although lower than in previous years, increased by 5.4%. One in four (23%) of those receiving benefits has a job. The figures are dramatic when viewed over a longer period:
Since 2015, the number of people receiving assistance has increased by 41.6%, particularly in southern Italy and the islands (+53.3%) and in northern Italy (+52.1%).
While the number of new poor has slightly decreased (from 45.3% to 41%), intermittent and chronic poverty is increasing, with one in four people receiving assistance for more than five years.
Prisons: promoting alternatives to imprisonment. In 2024 (data as of 30 September), there were 61,862 inmates in Italy’s 189 prisons, with 51,196 available prison places. This meant that the prison population exceeded 10,000 inmates. A total of 78 suicides were recorded in 2024 (up to 3 November). This high number is close to that of 2022, when there were 84 prisoner suicides. Caritas demands
“strong incentives for alternative measures to imprisonment, which reduce recidivism, promote reintegration into the community and are a possible solution to overcrowding.”
In 2024, a total of 222,518 people registered with the external penitentiary service (UEPE) were serving or have applied for alternatives to imprisonment. Of these: 50,189 were on probation (alternative measures); 46,094 on probation to social services; 21,771 on house arrest; 1,933 on day release.
Housing problems affect 1.5 million families. In Italy, 1.5 million families live in overcrowded, poorly lit dwellings without basic services such as running water in the washroom. Five per cent of all households struggle to pay their mortgage instalments or rent and utility bills.
Housing is the third-biggest problem reported in the Caritas counselling centres, affecting 22.7% of all Caritas beneficiaries.
This figure rises to 27% among non-Italian nationals only. And yet, as the Caritas Report notes, “government intervention is diminishing. The two cornerstone social and welfare housing policy measures in Italy have not been refinanced since 2022.”
Every year, the diocesan Caritas centres carry out 70/80 housing projects, also involving associations, cooperatives or other bodies across the territory. Over a period of 6 years (excluding 2020 because of the pandemic), 386 projects were implemented with a budget of over €42 million, including the voluntary contribution of taxpayers under the “Eight per thousand” scheme and co-financing by the dioceses. Target beneficiaries include the elderly, the homeless, migrant families and young foreign students.
A total of 430 Caritas projects were implemented nationwide with funds under the “Eight per Thousand tax scheme” (8xMille) in the year 2023. Twenty per cent of the projects concerned social and educational services for minors, adults and the elderly, community day centres and activities aimed at combating educational poverty. Some 18.6% of the projects were devoted to reception, community and housing services, 18.3% to the provision of food and material aid, soup kitchens and charity shops. 14% of projects focused on vocational training and job placement, 5% on youth training and health education, 3.7% on activities aimed at restorative justice and social justice.
