COVID-19 pandemic expands poverty in Turkey

“We have been helping vulnerable people for two decades, but never before have I seen such poverty.” This is how charity activist Hacer Foggo summarizes the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the most indigent segments of Turkish society. Foggo, a co-founder of the Deep Poverty Network, a civic initiative helping the poor, speaks of a rising number of people waiting outside groceries for the disposal of bad vegetables and fruits, mothers unable to breastfeed their babies because of malnourishment, and supermarkets installing hook locks on infant formula and other basic items of food. “I’m afraid that we’ll see … families living in the streets in the near future,” she warns.

Poverty in Turkey has both expanded and deepened during the pandemic, which hit at a time when Ankara was already in financial dire straits amid economic turmoil, since 2018.

Official statistics on poverty are available in the yearly Income and Living Conditions Survey of the Turkish Statistical Institute (TUIK), although many experts believe they fail to thoroughly reflect the picture on the ground. According to the 2019 survey, which is the most recent one, up to 17 million people live below the poverty line in the country of 81 million. How the figure has changed during the pandemic remains unknown, but as Foggo notes, alarming signs abound on the ground, especially in Istanbul. In addition to those worst hit, who struggle to feed themselves or pay for accommodation, millions of families are unable to pay for electricity or internet to ensure the remote schooling of their children.

The problem of poverty and income distribution has haunted Turkey for decades. The TUIK surveys provide the main reference for the trends, though they are not fully reliable as they rest on the incomes that families declare and lack any cross-testing methods.