Poverty in Canada

Once the full impact of the recent global economic crisis is calculated, it is estimated that as many as 4.8 million Canadians will be poor. If you gathered this many people in one place—men, women and children—you would create a city twice the size of Toronto.

On average, 9% of people living in Canada are poor. However, some groups are much more likely to be poor than others:

• Aboriginal women (First Nations, Métis, Inuit)—36%
• Visible minority women—35%
• Women with disabilities—26%
• Single parent mothers—21% (7% of single parent fathers are poor)
• Single senior women—14%
• Some groups have appallingly high rates of poverty: In Manitoba, almost 70% of Aboriginal children under the age of six are poor.

Compared to other developed countries, Canada’s poverty rate is high—we rank 20th out of 31 OECD countries. High poverty makes a country less competitive, its people less healthy, and its society less equal. 

 

Read more: FACTS-ABOUT-POVERTY