The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Bahamian households living below the $5,000 poverty line increased by 83 per cent between 2007 and 2011, an Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) report warning that “dramatic income deterioration” has driven this number well above 5,000.

The IDB report on the proposed $9.76 million reform of the Bahamian social security system, an initiative designed to reduce inefficiencies and costs, and ensure benefits reach those most in need, said that while 9.3 per cent of the population - some 5,000 households - had been assessed as living in poverty some 11 years ago, that number was likely to have soared in recent years due to the recession.

“Labour Force Survey (LFS) data indicated an 83 per cent growth in the number of households living below $5,000 between 2007 and 2011,” the IDB report warned. “This amounts to 30 per cent of persons 15 years and older.

“Trends from the Labour Force Surveys show a dramatic deterioration of income in the 2007-2011 period, indicating that the number of poor households may be much higher compared to 2001 rates.”

The 2001 Bahamas Living Conditions Survey (BLCS), the last time a true nationwide poverty assessment was conducted, found that 83 per cent of households living below the $5,000 annual income poverty line had children under 18 years-old.

The IDB project aims to make benefit payments conditional on recipients ensuring their children attend school, a vital step to ensuring better income equality and improved high school graduation rates.

Noting that “education outcomes and poverty are closely linked in the Bahamas”, the IDB report noted that only 34 per cent of children from poor families were enrolled in pre-school at three years-old, compared to 75 per cent of non-poor children.

More critically, the IDB report pointed to the “achievement gap”, finding that just 64.6 per cent of the poorest 10 per cent in Bahamian society had completed secondary school, compared to a 93.5 per cent graduation rate for the remainder.

This also translated into just a 48 per cent average graduation rate at Bahamian public high schools, based on students achieving a 2.0 GPA and 90 per cent attendance record.

Just 44 per cent of male public high school students achieve this and graduate, and only 51 per cent of female students. This compares to the 87.6 per cent graduation rate at Bahamian private schools, showing the great gap between their educational achievement and that of public schools. The ultimate consequences are borne by Bahamian employers through a generally low-quality, low productivity workforce.

“Though there are no graduation statistics by income decile, they are likely to be even lower for youngsters from disadvantaged families. Only 53.9 per cent of students in the public sector have a GPA above 2.0; for the 20 per cent of the worst performing schools, only 46.7 per cent reach this threshold,” the IDB report said.

Health was identified by the IDB report as another source of Bahamian weakness. It said that two chronic, non-communicable diseases, hypertension and diabetes, had collectively cost the Bahamian economy $73.7 million in 2001, the former accounting for $46.4 million and the latter $27.3 million. Together, they accounted for a sum equivalent to 1.36 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP).

And, if anything, the problem is likely to have gotten worse, with 65 per cent of Bahamians aged between 21-60 years-old said by the IDB report to be either overweight or obese. And non-communicable diseases accounted for 74 per cent of all deaths in the Bahamas, with cardiovascular disease and diabetes constituting 40 per cent.