Brazil’s homeless population rose 38% since 2019

After a new survey by the Institute of Applied Economic Research (IPEA), 281,000 homeless people were registered in Brazil.

The vast majority are located in the southeastern region, where the big cities are.

The IPEA surveyed the homeless population in Brazil and reported that in 2022 the figure exceeded 281,000 people, 38% more than in 2019.

In addition, the study specified that of the total number of homeless people, 20% live in São Paulo, the largest city in the country and South America.

IPEA considered that the increase in this figure is probably largely due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

On the other hand, a factor to consider is that as of 2019, during the government of Jair Bolsonaro, public housing policies were ceased for low-income families.

Many families ended up living in tents on viaducts or on the sidewalks of large cities.

Between 2012 and 2022, population growth was 11%, while the homeless segment advanced by 211%.

The southeastern region, where the large cities of São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, and Belo Horizonte are, has more than half of Brazil’s homeless population, some 151,000 people.

Meanwhile, in the north, in the Amazon region, where more than 25 million inhabitants live, the number of people living on the streets rose from 8,000 to 18,000 in four years.

MEASURES TO REVERSE THE SITUATION OF HOMELESSNESS

Due to this problem and the growing number of homeless people, the current president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, decided to relaunch the program “Minha Casa Minha Vida” (My House My Life), which had been implemented since 2009, mainly with funding for families with incomes up to US$400.

Bolsonaro’s administration changed the program’s name, which was one of the social achievements of the previous governments of Lula and Dilma Rousseff (2011-2016), and named it “Casa Verde Amarela” (Green and Yellow House).

However, it was intended for people with incomes close to US$1,000 monthly.

With information from ambito