That’s the message from Zeljko Bogetic, the World Bank’s lead economist for Russia. Even the bank, which is always under political pressure to emphasise how quickly economies can recover, is saying that as a result of the economic crisis an extra 7.5 million Russians have sunk below the poverty line, that the poor now comprise 17.4% of the population (up from 12.1% a year earlier) and that the number classed as “vulnerable” has risen by 3.6 million.
My recent article, including interviews with Bogetic and other economists about Russia’s difficulties in escaping the effects of the crisis, is here: http://www.simonpirani.com/em-oct09.html.
The World Bank’s Russian economic reports are downloadable here: http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES/ECAEXT/RUSSIANFEDERATIONEXTN/0,,contentMDK:20888536~menuPK:2445695~pagePK:1497618~piPK:217854~theSitePK:305600,00.html
Power, Money and People 