If poverty statistics were a mirror, they would reflect only part of the picture. Millions of women are missing from the data that shape policies, meaning they are also missing from the solutions – weakening the fight against poverty and gender inequality in the EU.
As we reflect on gender equality ahead of International Women’s Day on 8 March, we need to find ways to bring migrant women, disabled women and single mothers, among other groups, into the statistical picture and the policymaking process. After all, if you are not counted, you do not count.
The data sources used to develop many EU policies are flawed. The EU Statistics on Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC), the primary tool for measuring poverty, excludes people in collective households and institutions. Many migrant women, domestic violence survivors, Roma women, incarcerated women and homeless women are therefore erased from official data.
Similarly, the European Social Survey (ESS) and the Labour Force Survey (LFS) fail to capture informal and precarious work, disproportionately affecting migrant and ethnic-minority women.
Beyond these blind spots, data collection fails to account for systemic discrimination. Single mothers, especially those of an ethnic minority, face heightened scrutiny by institutions. In France, data mining has revealed that single mothers, particularly those with disabilities, are disproportionately targeted for fraud investigations by the Family Allowance Fund (CAF), reinforcing harmful stereotypes and exacerbating precarity.
Migrant women, particularly Black women, account for a disproportionate number of low-paid jobs such as domestic and cleaning work. These informal, precarious occupations exclude them from labour protections, maternity leave and social security, increasing their poverty risk while keeping their struggles invisible in statistics.
Stigma also affects mothers in low-income communities. When riots or delinquency make headlines, single mothers, rather than institutional failures, are blamed. Yet these women are often raising children despite systemic neglect and economic hardship. The lack of data on their experiences distorts policy responses and perpetuates exclusion.
No data, no progress
Policies based on incomplete data neglect those most at risk, undermining the EU’s commitments under the European Pillar of Social Rights and the Gender Equality Strategy. For example, parental leave systems across the EU often exclude migrant women due to restrictive employment and residency criteria. Without access to maternity leave, these women face a compounded motherhood penalty.
Unaffordable and complex childcare systems push many women into informal work or out of the labour market. Early childhood education is critical for breaking cycles of poverty, yet many low-income and ethnic-minority women struggle to secure these opportunities for their children.
Women with disabilities face intersecting discrimination, making them vulnerable to forced institutionalisation, violence, and material deprivation. Without targeted policies, their exclusion remains entrenched.
With the upcoming EU Anti-Poverty Strategy, the invisibility of marginalised women must be addressed if the EU aims to be serious about eradicating poverty. This requires comprehensive, intersectional data-gathering mechanisms that acknowledge the multidimensional nature of poverty, social exclusion and systemic discrimination. Household-based methodologies that exclude large segments of the population must be revised.
These improved statistics must then translate into meaningful policies that lift women and their families out of poverty. Women experiencing poverty must have a say in policymaking, not only in preparatory phases but also in policy implementation and assessment at EU and national levels.
Policymakers must develop gender-responsive social protection policies addressing barriers at the intersection of gender, residency status, ethnicity, institutionalisation, precarious employment and motherhood. The EU is projected to attain gender parity in 67 years, but this estimate ignores the most vulnerable women, those absent from official statistics.
How much longer must we wait if we counted the missing poor women? Without inclusive data, we will never know, and we cannot effectively combat poverty.
Addressing these data gaps is not just a technical necessity but a political imperative. To fulfil the EU’s social and gender equality commitments, all women, including the most marginalised, must be visible in policymaking. The future of European Social Rights depends on policy-driven action informed by disaggregated, intersectional data collection.
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