Calculate the change in poverty percentage for each country.
Identify Romania as the country with the greatest increase (42%).
Confirm that poverty increased overall in Europe from 1987 to 1995.
Recognize the collapse of communism as a contributing factor.
The country with the greatest jump in percentage of population living in poverty was Romania. According to the chart, the percentage of people living in poverty in Europe increased from 1987 to 1995. According to what you have learned in the lesson, the collapse of communism was a contributing factor to the trends shown on the chart.
Explanation
Analyzing the Data First, let's analyze the data provided in the table. We have the percentage of the population living in poverty for several European countries during two time periods: 1987-1988 and 1993-1995. We need to determine the overall trend in poverty, identify the country with the greatest increase in poverty, and suggest a contributing factor to these trends.
Calculating the Increase in Poverty To find the country with the greatest jump in the percentage of population living in poverty, we need to calculate the difference between the poverty rates in 1993-1995 and 1987-1988 for each country.
Romania: 48 − 6 = 42 Hungary: 7 − 1 = 6 Poland: 10 − 6 = 4 Russia: 39 − 2 = 37 Ukraine: 26 − 2 = 24
From these calculations, we can see that Romania had the greatest increase in the percentage of its population living in poverty (42%).
Determining the Overall Trend Based on the data, most countries experienced an increase in poverty from 1987-1988 to 1993-1995. Therefore, the percentage of people living in poverty in Europe increased from 1987 to 1995.
Identifying Contributing Factors The period between the late 1980s and early to mid-1990s was a time of significant political and economic change in Eastern Europe, including the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the transition from communist regimes to market economies. This transition was often accompanied by economic instability, increased unemployment, and reduced social safety nets, which likely contributed to the increase in poverty in many of these countries.
Final Answer Therefore, the completed statements are:
According to the chart, the percentage of people living in poverty in Europe increased from 1987 to 1995.
The country with the greatest jump in percentage of population living in poverty was Romania.
According to what you have learned in the lesson, the collapse of communism was a contributing factor to the trends shown on the chart.
Examples
Understanding poverty trends is crucial for policymakers and social scientists. For instance, if a government observes a significant increase in poverty rates following economic reforms, it might implement targeted social programs to mitigate the negative impacts on vulnerable populations. Similarly, international organizations can use this data to allocate resources and support to countries facing economic hardship. Analyzing poverty trends helps in creating effective strategies for poverty reduction and sustainable development.
The percentage of people living in poverty in Europe increased from 1987 to 1995, with Romania showing the greatest rise in poverty at 42%. The collapse of communism played a significant role in this trend, contributing to economic instability and rising unemployment in many Eastern European countries.
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