Homeless population in Brazil grows 16% from December to May, says survey

The homeless population in Brazil grew by about 16% between December 2021 and May this year alone. The data are from the Brazilian Observatory of Public Policies with the Homeless Population, platform of the Transdisciplinary Program Poles of Citizenship of the Federal University of Minas Gerais (POLOS-UFMG).

In December 2021, according to records in CadÚnico, there were 158,191 people living on the streets of Brazil. In May of this year, the number jumped to 184,638.

With 42,240 records, the city of São Paulo is the capital with the highest number of homeless people. Following are Rio de Janeiro, with 10,624 records, and Belo Horizonte, with 10,241.

The UFMG researchers believe that the indicators are just a sample of the real situation, considering that there is an underreporting of the homeless population in CadÚnico, which varies between 45 and 50%.

Check out the main indicators:

Total homeless population in Brazil: 158,191 people (December/2021)

• 68% declare themselves black, 31% white and 1% indigenous and yellow
• 87% male and 13% female
• 93% in conditions of extreme poverty and poverty
• 84% receive Auxílio Brasil (Bolsa Família)
• 87% aged between 18 and 59 years old, 3% children/adolescents (0 to 17 years old) and 10% over 60 years old
• 15% have a disability
• 47% have incomplete primary education, 14% complete primary education, 16% complete secondary education and 9% incomplete, 11% have no “education” (cannot read and write) and 2% incomplete or complete higher education

Position of capitals (May 2022)

1. São Paulo (42,240 homeless people)
2. Rio de Janeiro (10,624)
3. Belo Horizonte (10,241)
4. Brasilia (6,339)
5. Salvador (5,561)
6. Stronghold (4,896)
7. Curitiba (3,020)
8. Porto Alegre (2,363)
9. Boa Vista (1,798)
10. Florianopolis (1,498)