Having survived the global recession and entered a period of fiscal growth, the Baltic country of Latvia is now widely considered an economic success story.
But an investigation by OCCRP partner Re:Baltica found that the country in fact has the highest income inequality rate in the European Union, and some of the highest poverty and unemployment rates as well.
Latvia's radical wealth disparity is perpetrated by unjust social policies, Re:Baltica's report found. The government spends more than most European countries on supporting children from middle- and high-income families, but less than almost any other EU country on social benefits that target the poor, according to the World Bank.
And recent austerity measures have deepened this income divide, as they have most heavily burdened the poor, according to IMF and World Bank reports.
As a result, one out of five people in Latvia is poor, living on a monthly household income of €215 or less, Re:Baltica found; last year, 100,000 Latvians lived on less than €65 a month.
Re:Baltica's report details the negotiations that led to Latvia's current policies, profiles the families suffering under them, and outlines the financial fixes being proposed by experts.