This section presents evidence on various aspects of living standards in Greece. Living standards can be measured through households' level of consumption and access to various amenities, through the evolution and inequality of their income and by the rates of poverty and material deprivation. In addition, government expenditures on social benefits can contribute to the reduction of inequality and poverty.
The first graph presents the evolution of the value of monthly consumption for the average household.
The next graph presents the evolution of the disposable income per person.
The Gini index measures inequality and takes higher values when inequality is higher. The next graph presents the evolution of the Gini index and how it is affected by social transfers (pensions and other social transfers.
The next graph shows the share of the population that is at risk of poverty and the change in that share through pensions and other social transfers.
Social protection expenditures are government expenditures that provide support to households who find themselves in circumstances that adversely affect their welfare.
Social protection benefits include cash benefits (such as pensions, income support and social assistance payments), social services (such as childcare, care for the elderly and persons with disabilities), and tax breaks with a social purpose (such as fiscal support for families with children and favourable tax treatment of contributions to private health plans).
The next graph presents the evolution of total and per-capita social protection benefits and shows the breakdown into eight categories:
- Healthcare
- Disability
- Old age benefits (pensions and other goods and services, except medical care)
- Survivors’ benefits
- Family/children benefits
- Unemployment
- Housing
- Social exclusion benefits
Pensions are the largest category among social protection benefits.