The goal is to guarantee rights, prevent exclusion and make sure in the future no one has to live on the streets.
Almost 6,000 people in Catalonia sleep rough every night. If you add those who find temporary shelter in hostels, emergency accommodation or public shelters, the number rises to over 10,000. However, the emergency is even greater: over 59,000 people live in precarious housing conditions, often in unhealthy spaces, under threat of eviction or in contexts marked by domestic violence. The dramatic picture painted by the latest report of the Department of Social Rights of the Generalitat, dates back to 2022.
In response to this emergency, the Catalan Parliament, at the proposal of the Community of Sant'Egidio and other organisations - Cáritas, Fundació Arrels, Sant Joan de Déu Serveis Socials and ASSÍS, and in collaboration with experts from the UB and UAB universities - green-lighted parliamentary debate on a bill to guarantee the fundamental rights of homeless people and tackle housing exclusion in a structural manner.
Launched three years ago as a pioneering initiative in Europe, the law had to wait until the end of the last legislative term to get back on track, but today it is presented with a concrete plan and a planned investment of 350 million euros over five years. The goal is ambitious: to guarantee, within five years, access to decent housing, food, healthcare and essential services, such as a minimum living income or guaranteed citizenship income, for approximately 18,000 people.
The Community of Sant'Egidio, which has been committed to helping those living on the streets for many years, has promoted this initiative and today warmly welcomes this important step forward, opening up the possibility of better living conditions for extremely fragile and vulnerable people.
