European Union Has No Standards for Poverty in BiH

A total of 628,000 people in Serbia live in absolute poverty, Serbian media reported yesterday. Poverty in Serbia is measured according to standards that are approximately the same as in Bosnia and Herzegovina. In BiH, according to these data, about 540,000 people live below the poverty line, with average monthly incomes of around 120 euros per person, writes Patria.  

Unlike Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, poverty in Croatia is measured by different standards. According to data from the Croatian Bureau of Statistics, based on a survey of household income, the risk of poverty threshold for a single-person household last year was around 500 marks per month. This is twice as much as the standards applied in Serbia and BiH.

Joining the European Union has completely tightened poverty measures in the Republic of Croatia. At one government session two years ago, a shocking figure was presented - Croatia has as many as 1.38 million poor citizens according to the criteria of the European Commission. These data are still valid, as the number of poor people is very difficult to reduce. Croatia's plan by 2020 is to have 100,000 fewer poor people. In general, the standard of living for Croatian citizens is among the lowest in the European Union, along with that in Romania and Bulgaria.

Bosnia and Herzegovina must consider economic development and growth, while approaching the European Union. In BiH, GDP must at least double, as the poverty measures are also twice as high. Poverty and underdevelopment will be key obstacles for BiH and Serbia on their path to the European Union. All other problems seem easier to solve.