FIGURE 15.5 When Below Average Is a Good Thing Canada has done relatively well in reducing poverty rates among its seniors population compared with other industrialized countries in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). On average, 12.8 percent of people over the age of 65 in OECD countries live in poverty, which is defined as having an income below half the national median. Canada’s poverty rate is 7.2 percent.