The value of the Universal Child Allowance (AUH) has plummeted since its implementation and each time it covers fewer needs.
As a consequence of inflation, the purchasing power of the Asignación Universal por Hijo (AUH) experienced a sharp fall since its implementation, which caused a sharp increase in poverty, as indicated by the fact that when it started, 14 years ago, this subsidy was enough to purchase 80% of a child’s basic basket, while currently it barely covers 26%.
In this period, poverty jumped from 33 to 40%, as revealed by an estimate by the economist Ricardo Delgado, from the Analytica consultancy, which states that the AUH reaches 4.3 million beneficiaries under 18 years of age and 2.5 million holders, adults who receive this social assistance in their bank accounts.
The allocation was created by decree in 2009, when poverty was 33%, while today it is around 40%.
“Inflation was doing its job, slow but inexorable”, warned Delgado who added: “Not having attended to the inflationary drama is lethal for the most vulnerable children. Stabilizing is socially progressive: there is nothing more regressive than this inflation, ”he indicated.
Poverty grows and income falls
If the increase in the AUH is computed, which is scheduled for September and which will take the amount of coverage per child to $17,093, plus the Food Card of $17,000, coverage reaches 46%.
Although most of the AUH beneficiaries also collect the Alimentar Card, this additional contribution is not for everyone, since it only covers minors up to 14 years of agewhile the AUH extends to 18.
Delgado explained that while the AUH has been around for 14 years and is interpreted as a “State policy by almost all political forces,” the Alimentar Card was launched as a complement to the AUH in January 2020 and is not universal but discretionary.
The latest INDEC measurement shows that poverty reached 39.2% in the second semester of 2022, while the data corresponding to the first semester of this year will be released by INDEC on September 27 and everything indicates that they will exceed 40% and not counting the inflationary spiral resulting from the devaluation after the STEP.
at the end of the under Alberto Fernández’s management, poverty could exceed the peak of 42% that occurred in the pandemic and reaching the highest mark since 44% in the first half of 2004.
The poverty basket for a family with three children reaches $297,646, while social aid for that same group completes $188,093, according to a study by economist Fernando Marull.
Currently, a family that earns two minimum wages earns $225,000 and does not cover the basket either: “Today social aid, even with the increases planned for September, are at the lowest level since April 2021,” remarks Marull.
The Social Debt Observatory of the Catholic University estimates that a sustained growth of 2% per year for 10 years to reduce poverty to 30%. But for this year the economy is expected to fall 3%.
This explains why, according to UNICEF, 7 million children live in homes where the basic food basket is not enough.
2023-08-27 22:25:50
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