Boric Commends Significant Decrease in Poverty Across All Dimensions, Highlights Casen 2024 Results

Original article: “Disminuye la pobreza en todas sus dimensiones”: Boric valora resultados de la Casen

President Gabriel Boric highlighted the encouraging findings from the 2024 National Socioeconomic Characterization Survey (Casen), asserting that they confirm a significant reduction in poverty across the nation «in all its dimensions.»

«Today we have good news for Chile. In the coming hours, Minister of Social Development and Family, Javiera Toro, will publicly present the results of the Casen 2024 survey, showing the decrease of poverty in our country across all its dimensions,» Boric announced this Thursday from the Valparaíso Region.

The survey, whose release was postponed to incorporate recommendations from the Advisory Commission for Poverty Measurement, is based on a new methodology that, according to the President, is more rigorous and «was developed over a long period by an independent panel of experts that raises the standards with which the State measures the social reality of the country.»

He explained that this update includes new parameters such as connectivity and caregiving, in addition to a review of the basic goods basket.

Boric directly linked the positive results to the actions of his administration, providing an overview of their entire term.

«During our government, we witnessed the 2022 Casen Survey and today, the 2024 results. We can proudly say that poverty has decreased in Chile during our administration,» he stated.

«Governing responsibly means measuring accurately, acting seriously, and addressing problems with data, hard work, and commitment while engaging authorities on the ground consistently. This is the path we are following,» he emphasized.

The Head of State attributed this progress to measures and public policies aimed at protecting families.

«These achievements are a result of management and decisions that centered on individuals, of public policies that protected families during economically tough times and that today allow us to advance again. They also reflect the long-term work of the State and showcase the importance of public action in improving people’s lives,» he remarked.

Call for Continuity

Subsequently, via his account on the social network X, President Boric contrasted the study’s figures with opposition claims.

«While the right insists that Chile is falling apart and speaks of an emergency government, today the Casen informs us that over our four years in power, following the trajectory laid down by our predecessors, poverty in Chile has significantly decreased,» he wrote.

Despite the celebratory tone, Boric cautioned against complacency. «We must never forget that many families in Chile still struggle to make ends meet, middle-class families living with uncertainty and insecurity, and families living below the poverty line,» he warned.

Finally, the President elevated the reduction of poverty to a cross-cutting State policy, hinting at the upcoming administration of José Antonio Kast. «This is a State policy that must be maintained regardless of the ruling governments,» he emphasized.

600,000 People Escaped Poverty Since 2022

The President’s statements coincided with the Ministry of Social Development revealing the official results of the Casen 2024 survey, which show a decrease in income poverty, multidimensional poverty, and severe poverty.

According to the study conducted under the new methodology, nearly 600,000 individuals have exited poverty since 2022 in the country.

In this context, the measurement of income poverty eliminated the use of imputed rent in the calculation of household incomes and established differentiated poverty lines for tenant and non-tenant households.

Alongside these changes, a healthier food basket was introduced, which reduces the presence of ultra-processed products by 50%.

When analyzing the data, income poverty stood at 17.3% in 2024, which equates to a total of 3,478,364 people, reflecting a decrease of 3.2 percentage points.

It is noteworthy that under the criteria of the previous methodology, a downward trend is also observed when comparing the current results with the 22.5% recorded in 2017, the 28.3% from 2020, and the 20.5% from 2022.

In terms of extreme poverty, also measured under the new standard, this indicator was recorded at 6.9% in 2024, down from 9.2% in 2017, 14.3% in 2020, and 5.8% in 2022.

Multidimensional poverty also declined, reaching 17.7% of the population in 2024, down from 20% in 2022, according to Bio Bío Chile.

Regarding severe poverty—which includes households facing both income poverty and multidimensional poverty—the indicator fell from 7.8% in 2022 to 6.1% in 2024.

In terms of income inequality, the index measuring monetary incomes—autonomous incomes plus cash transfers from the State—stood at 4.46, indicating a reduction in inequality compared to 2017.