With S/9,300 million they seek to reduce precariousness

Dina Boluarte’s management plans to inject S/9,307 million for social protection over the next year: 19% more than registered in the Opening Institutional Budget (PIA) of 2023, and little more than double that of a decade ago.

The main objectives of this specification are to increase the coverage of programs such as Pensión 65, Contigo, Qali Warma, Comedores Populares and Vaso de Leche (see infographic).

S/89 million will also be transferred to finance the 3,000 common pots registered in the country, which provide 235,000 compatriots.

Julio Demartini, head of the Ministry of Development and Social Inclusion (Midis), considers that this list of items is “historic”, since it seeks, for example, to stop the increase in poverty and thus “make the invisible visible”.

The official’s statements came just after the start of mass registration in 60 urban districts and expansion areas because “gaps still exist,” he told TV Peru.

Demartini estimates reaching five million citizens in this first stage of the survey, spread over more than 1.5 million homes.

It’s a small step

Mónica Muñoz-Nájar, coordinator of the Red de Estudios para el Desarrollo (Networks), welcomes the prioritization of social protection, since in other areas, such as work, the proposed budget has been reduced.

At your discretion, the Midi it must avoid the mistakes of the past when it wanted to articulate the registration with the local municipalities. Reliable proof of the ineffectiveness of this tandem is that, after two years, the common pots did not enjoy a solid budget after being institutionalized.

Regarding urban poverty, remember that this is not static and, therefore, the actions to combat it should not be the same as those applied in Contigo, Juntos or other rural programs.

“In the urban aspect, one can have a temporary job per campaign, suppose, in October, and by January they no longer have it. Poverty is more dynamic in the urban area. International evidence indicates that cities should work more with technical assistance in soft skills, ”he commented to La República.

Poverty would increase

As a result of the minuscule growth of the economy forecast by the Government for this year (1.1%), the increase in poverty is inevitable, says the economist Armando Mendoza. Specialists previously consulted by this means warn that the poverty rate would return to 30% of the population with the harsh slowdown in GDP.

The equation becomes complicated for households: employment income continues to contract and inflation does not subside. Paying for the basic basket is a martyrdom.

“Even if we were to close at 1%, in real terms, it is a lost year,” said the academic.

As a moral —says Mendoza—, that the Government now recognizes that urban poverty is a problem collapses the argument that “poverty is isolated to certain areas and the market already regulates the cities” —which is why there are programs clearly rural social as those already mentioned at the beginning.

In this line, from the Midis they advanced to this newspaper that will allocate between S/50 to S/130 additional to the beneficiaries of Urban Together. The guidelines to benefit from this program will be detailed in the coming days.

It is worth noting that compatriots registered in Juntos receive S/200 every two months and another S/50 for the Early Childhood Transfer (TPI).

The data

Attention. 9 out of 10 new poor live in urban areas, according to IRD researcher Javier Herrera.

Trend. Urban poverty is 9.6 points higher than in 2019, while rural poverty “is close to its lowest historical levels,” she added.

reactions

Armando Mendoza, economist

“Something ‘good’ is that a dogma of the model collapses: poverty is an isolated issue in certain areas and it is necessary to reach those isolated groups. Fake. The poverty urban is a problem.

Mónica Muñoz-Nájar, coordinator of Networks

“Social protection has been prioritized unlike other sectors such as work, where the budget was reduced (…). Note that urban poverty is not static. The rural areas should not be applied”.