Munich (dpa/lby) - The living standard of people in the Free State fell by around five percent from 1999 to 2019 - at least in relation to per inhabitant. This is according to the current Regional Welfare Index (RWI), which was presented on Monday at a Green Party press conference in the state parliament in Munich.
The index collected, which summarizes economic prosperity and factors such as environmental damage, fell to 95.5, measured against the reference year 1999 with an index of 100.4. The total RWI value in the Free State has risen slightly over the past 20 years, but has to be distributed to more people due to the increase in population.
The authors also focus on two reasons for the lower standard of living: Firstly, the RWI shows that the so-called gap between low and high incomes continues to widen. In addition, more and more greenhouse gases would also result in increasing costs. The loss of prosperity that would result from water shortages, crop failures or natural disasters, for example, would be calculated here.
"Prosperity means more than just economic growth," emphasized the Bavarian Green Party leader Katharina Schulze. "The state government must gear its instruments and measures much more specifically to consistent climate and environmental protection, fair opportunities and groups of people who are particularly vulnerable to artus." The aim must be that more people benefit from the economic success in Bavaria.
This year's Regional Welfare Index for Bavaria was compiled by the Institute for Interdisciplinary Research (FEST) in Heidelberg and funded by the Greens in the Bavarian state parliament. The authors see it as an alternative indicator to gross domestic product (GDP). Above all, he focuses on the development of national prosperity based on private consumer spending. In addition to the economic, social and ecological aspects are also taken into account to a greater extent than in the case of GDP.
