MOSCOW, February 29. /TASS/. The poverty problem continues to be acute in Russia and affects more than 9% of the country’s population, President Vladimir Putin said in the State of the Nation Address to the Federal Assembly.

"I would like to reiterate, the poverty problem is still severe. It directly covers at present more than 9% of the national population and among families with many children, according to estimates given by experts, the poverty level is about 30%," the President said.

The poverty control is a challenging task and is of a systemic, multi-aspect nature, Putin noted. "Therefore, I say again, it is important that all the measures we take in this sphere, all the tools we use are effective and efficient, and provide the tangible actual result for people, for our families," he added.