Those in need should be given all possible assistance and every opportunity to escape poverty, Minister of State for Social Affairs and Inclusion Károly Czibere said at a press conference held on Friday to mark the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty in one of the country’s poorest areas, the György housing estate of the southwest Hungarian city of Pécs.
The Minister of State said the joint initiative of the Municipality of Pécs and the Hungarian Maltese Charity Service – now in its seventh year – is a good example of how the standard of living can be improved in a community whose situation had seemed hopeless. He said the initiative included the renovation of the community centre and the improvement of common areas, in addition to offering education programmes.
Mr. Czibere said Hungary is successfully tackling child poverty, as – according to Eurostat data – it has managed to reduce the number of children living in poverty from 415,000 to 400,000 over the past three years. He also said that the Cabinet will be discussing the updating of its inclusion strategy on Saturday, and is seeking new ways to tackle the problem of school dropouts.
(Ministry of Human Capacities, MTI)
