World Poor Day: «Wage pay is too low» in Portugal, says head of the European Anti-Poverty Network
Maria Joaquina Madeira praises the role of Pope Francis in raising awareness of inequalities and the need for the excluded to take the lead
Lisbon, 14 Nov 2021 (Ecclesia) – The vice-president of the European Anti-Poverty Network (EAPN) -Portugal said that the country has a practice of “too low” salaries, so that “it is not enough to have work to not be poor” .
“This is one of the hypotheses that distinguishes us from most countries in Europe”, said Maria Joaquina Madeira, guest of the joint weekly interview Ecclesia / Renascença, which is broadcast and published every Sunday.
The air manager that, of the 56% of people aged 18 to 64 at risk of poverty, about half had an income of 330 euros per month.
“It is not acceptable to admit – that among us there are people who live with so many difficulties that they do not have access to basic rights”, he points out.
For an interview, the entire “social fabric” of Portugal needs to be revitalized to “be able to raise people’s standard of living in general”.
Maria Joaquina Madeira hopes that the country’s political instability will not delay measures and subscribes as Pope Francis’ words when he says that poverty is not “fatalism” and that the poor must be “protagonists” of solutions.
“May the people who experience the problems themselves, in this case of exclusion and poverty, be part of the solutions, because they have a mindset and are able to reflect on the topic”, he urges.
The conversation addressed the Pope’s message for the V World Day of the Poor, which the Catholic Church marks this Sunday, in which it is alert to the social and economic consequences of the pandemic.
The vice-president of EAPN-Portugal speaks of a “situation of great inequality” in Portugal and in the world, where “poverty passes from generation to generation”.
Maria Joaquina Madeira expresses the hope that the fight against poverty is a “national aim”.
Angela Roque (Renaissance) and Octávio Carmo (Ecclesia)