FRIEDRICH-EBERT-STIFTUNG – A majority working in the shadows Figure 2.2 Regular use of medical care, by urban/rural residence 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 43.5% 26.5% 17.5% 50.3% 31.7% 18.6% 55.6% 37.9% 17.6% 10% 0% Senegal Benin Côte d'Ivoire 76.6% 59.6% 66.9% 69.8% 17.0% Ethiopia 3.0% Zambia Rural Urban use gap Note: Households included only if they reported cases of sickness during past 12 months. 67.8% 69.6% 1.8% Kenya Figure 2.3 Use of medical care, by gender 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% 31.4% 28.7% male female Senegal 32.7% 31.9% male female Benin 25.7% 19.9% male female Côte d'Ivoire 17.5% 17.5% male female Ethiopia 10.7% 9.4% male female Kenya use regular use low Note: Households included only if they reported cases of sickness over the past 12 months. 12.8% 12.3% male female Zambia 2.2.4 Use of medical care – inequality by income A look at the impact of household earnings on the use of medical care reveals a slightly modified pattern of inequality. Respondents’ household income was grouped into four income classes: the»extreme poor«(monthly household income less than half the statutory minimum wage), the »moderately poor«(monthly household income between half and full minimum wage), the»non-poor«(monthly household income between minimum wage and twice the minimum wage) and the»well-off«(monthly household income higher than twice the minimum wage). 7 In terms of these income classes five countries indicate a positive corre­lation. In Senegal, Kenya, Benin, Côte d’Ivoire and Ethiopia, the use of medical care is higher when income increases. The effect is negligible in Zambia. Zambia is thus the only country in which income does not decide whether medical treatment is used or not(see Figure 2.4). The situation of many poor people in Senegal and Benin is miserable. Around 40 per cent of households with an income below 50 per cent of the statutory minimum wage – that is, 7 Ethiopia does not have a statutory minimum wage. Income classes were defined as a multiple of 1,500 Birr. 10