People cool themselves off at a fountain in Kiev, Ukraine, on Aug. 13, 2017. (Xinhua/Sergey)

KIEV, Dec. 28 (Xinhua) -- The poverty in Ukraine has declined in 2017 due to the higher incomes of people, the country's Social Policy Minister Andriy Reva said here on Thursday.

According to him, this year, 15.1 percent of the total population or about 6.4 million people have been lifted out of poverty.

"The increase in social standards and the rising wages were the reasons for poverty reduction," Reva said at his annual press conference.

This year, the government has doubled the minimum wage and increased social welfare payments for the most vulnerable groups. The average wage in the country was up 37 percent in 2017.

Despite the progress, about 39.4 percent of the country's population are still defined as poor.

The level of poverty in Ukraine has skyrocketed amid the crisis, which began in the country at the end of 2013. Between the start of 2014 and the end of 2016, the poverty has risen from 8.4 percent to 54.5 percent.