(MENAFN) In 2024, more than 20% of individuals across the European Union were exposed to the threat of poverty or social marginalization, as stated in findings published on Friday by the EU’s statistics bureau, Eurostat.

According to the report, five areas recorded figures over twice the EU’s average.

The highest percentage was observed in the French overseas department of French Guiana, where 59.5% of residents were affected.

This was followed by the southern Italian regions of Calabria and Campania, which posted rates of 48.8% and 43.5%, respectively.

Additionally, Spain’s self-governing cities of Melilla and Ceuta each registered more than 40% of their population within this vulnerable category.

Altogether, 25 regions had at least one-third of their inhabitants facing risks related to poverty or social exclusion.

These areas were largely situated in Greece, Bulgaria, Spain, Italy, and Romania, along with France’s most remote territories.

Interestingly, the list also included two urban centers in western Europe – the Brussels-Capital Region in Belgium and Bremen in Germany.

Conversely, 26 regions across the bloc reported rates of poverty or social exclusion below 12.5%. These included seven areas in northern and central Italy, such as the Autonomous Province of Bolzano near the Austrian border, which recorded the EU’s lowest figure at 6.6%.

Czechia also stood out, with six of its eight regions falling under the same low-risk threshold. Notably, the Jihozápad region reported the EU’s third-lowest rate, at 8.8%.

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