Insee Focus · July 2022 · n° 270

Extreme poverty much more frequent and intense in the overseas departments

Extreme poverty is 5 to 15 times more frequent in the overseas departments (DOM) than in metropolitan France. It is also much more intense there. In the four historical DOMs (Guadeloupe, Martinique, French Guiana and La Reunion), single-parent families, the unemployed and retired people are particularly affected. In addition to its monetary dimension, the major characteristic of extreme poverty compared to less acute situations of poverty is the frequency of deprivation, including for basic needs such as food or clothing for 4 to 8 out of 10 people in extreme poverty. With the exception of French Guiana, carlessness is less frequent than in metropolitan France.