Some rural areas including Border and western regions are at a greater risk of poverty compared to Dublin and other large cities, according to new research by the Combat Poverty Agency.
The study found that people in Donegal, Mayo, Leitrim and Longford were at the greatest risk of not being able to afford basic necessities, such as adequate clothing, food and heating.
The highest level of consistent poverty was recorded in Donegal, where the risk of poverty was almost twice the national average.
The lowest levels were recorded in parts of Dublin, such as Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown, south Dublin and Fingal and in commuter belt counties outside the capital such as Meath and Kildare.
The report, Mapping Poverty: National, Regional and County Patterns, is due to be published today and challenges the perception that poverty is largely urban-based.
The findings will be of particular interest to Minister for Social Affairs Séamus Brennan who has said that tackling poverty is one of his key objectives.
The report maps the distribution of poverty using information from county and city councils for the first time, as well as other established sources. The report concludes that the countryside and villages are at greater risk of poverty than more populated areas.
While consistent poverty in Dublin was on a par with the national average, the lowest levels were recorded in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown, south Dublin and Fingal, which were 40 to 60 per cent below the national average.
The same pattern was reflected in Cork, Limerick and Waterford, where lower levels of deprivation were recorded in the county compared to the city. Urban areas such as Dublin have fared better during the economic boom compared to more rural areas, figures suggest.
Although overall levels of consistent poverty reduced sharply overall between 1994 and 2000, the drop was most dramatic in Dublin where rates fell from 19 per cent to 3 per cent during this period. This compares to a fall from 22 per cent to 10 per cent in smaller towns.
While poverty risk varies around the country, it is most closely associated with the nature of housing tenure. People in local authority housing face the greatest poverty risk at 33 per cent, compared to the national average of 6 per cent.
The report says the position of local authority tenants has worsened in relation to the rest of the population in recent years, although the overall level of poverty has fallen, and their share of the housing market has declined.
Tenants in private housing are another high-risk category, with twice the average poverty rate. Local authority tenants and people in the private rented sector account for almost two-thirds of households experiencing deprivation.
While figures suggest there is an uneven distribution of poverty across the State, the influence of geography is played down in the report's conclusions. Instead, it states that a combination of factors, such as economic activity, educational achievement and social class, are more important factors.
For example, counties in the Border and western regions were among the areas with the oldest population, the lowest levels of educational achievement, the lowest levels of professional classes and the highest levels of small-farm activities.
In contrast, most of Dublin and the mid-east, along with commuter counties such as Meath and Kildare, are among the counties with the youngest age profiles, the highest levels of large-scale farming, lowest unemployment rates and highest educational achievement.
The research uses three broad measures of poverty - household income, material deprivation and socio-demographic data - to measure the distribution of poverty across the State.
