Poverty falls in Thailand saya a think tank

from AFP via Google

Despite the sluggish economy, extreme poverty fell in Thailand last yea, according to agovernment think tank. - Kale

The number of people living below the poverty line fell to 5.4 million in 2007, down from 6.1 million the year before, the National Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB) said.

Families earning less than 1,443 baht (about 43 dollars) per month for each person in the household are considered below the poverty line in Thailand.

The gap between rich and poor also narrowed last year. The richest 20 percent of the population earned 8.6 times as much as the poorest 20 percent, the think tank said.

In 2006, the richest Thais earned 9.9 times more than the poorest.

"The number of poor people has dropped for five consecutive years, from 9.1 million in 2002 to 5.4 million last year," said NESDB spokesman Somchai Sakdawekeeisorn.

However, Somchai said that more than half of the poor were concentrated in the northeastern region of Thailand.

"The decline of the poor population in 2007 was due mainly to a better economic expansion, a low unemployment rate and a narrower income gap among the rich and the poor," Somchai told AFP.

Thailand's unemployment rate was at 1.4 percent last year.

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