Guatemala City, October 20 (teleSUR-RHC)-- Low tax collection has left more than 53 percent of Guatemalans living in poverty and 17 percent in extreme poverty, Guatemala’s Ministry of Social Development said Monday.

Officials added poverty is especially common in rural areas in the north and southwest and that it disproportionately effects Indigenous peoples, who represent more than 40 percent of the population. 

Recent data provided by international agencies on the ground has revealed that more than 90 percent of the Indigenous population live on an income that is below the poverty line. The World Bank uses an updated international poverty line of $1.90 a day, which incorporates new information on differences in the cost of living across countries. 

The government claims that since 2008 it has implemented social programs as a measure to eradicate this issue. However, since 2012 the budget implementation of these projects has been reduced. 

This situation is compounded by the widespread, systematic corruption existing in the Central American country. Last month former President Otto Perez Molina was forced to resign after being linked to a corruption scandal known as “La Linea.”

The U.N’s Sustainable Development Goals were discussed last month by world leaders at the General Assembly, where they agreed to adopt a total of 17 goals starting with ending poverty, in all its forms, everywhere. 

According to them, the number of people living in poverty and abject poverty has declined in the last 30 years. However, the numbers still remain high as almost 1 billion people are considered extremely poor and another billion poor.