  Background: Poverty among the population of a country is one of the most
disputable topics in social studies. Many researchers devote their work to
identifying the factors that influence it most. Bulgaria is one of the EU
member states with the highest poverty levels. Regional facets of social
exclusion and risks of poverty among the population are a key priority of the
National Development Strategy for the third decade of 21st century. In order to
mitigate the regional poverty levels it is necessary for the social policy
makers to pay more attention to the various factors expected to influence these
levels. Results: Poverty reduction is observed in most areas of the country.
The regions with obviously favorable developments are Sofia district, Pernik,
Pleven, Lovech, Gabrovo, Veliko Tarnovo, Silistra, Shumen, Stara Zagora,
Smolyan, Kyustendil and others. Increased levels of poverty are found for
Razgrad and Montana districts. It was fond that the reduction in the risk of
poverty is associated to the increase in employment, investment, and housing.
Conclusion: The social policy making needs to be aware of the fact that the
degree of exposition to risk of poverty and social exclusion significantly
relates to the levels of regional employment, investment and housing.
