Anger of the poor is growing in Turkey

Poverty in Turkey has reached unprecedented proportions amid the COVID-19 pandemic, as the government lacks the means to offer meaningful relief. The impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the most indigent segments of Turkish society has never been seen before. 

According to official statistics, 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 alarming signs abound on the ground, especially in Istanbul.

A rising number of people are 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.

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 problem 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.

Little progress has been seen since 2015, although President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government often boasts of elevating living standards in the country. The income of the richest 20% in Turkey remains 7.5 times bigger than that of the remaining 80%.

Pundits expect a major increase in the impoverishment rate and the number of poor due to a steep increase in unemployment and income losses in low- and middle-income groups, coupled with the government’s failure to extend adequate support to those in need.

With little to offer as direct cash assistance, the AKP government encouraged borrowing by facilitating access to cheap credit, especially in the second half of 2020. This, of course, was of little benefit to the poor, especially those in the grips of “deep poverty.”

Turkey’s official unemployment rate has floated around 12% to 13% during the pandemic. Yet alternative calculation methods, counting in those who stopped actively looking for jobs out of despair or because of pandemic restrictions, put the rate at about 40%, or nearly 10 million people. This alone is a striking sign that poverty in the country is both expanding and deepening.