The Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics  (IBGE), in partnership with city administrations and other organizations, defined the calendar of regional events to launch the pilot test for the National Census of the Population Experiencing Homelessness, an unprecedented initiative by the IBGE, which will be held in different Brazilian capitals over June and July. The complete program is available on the census operation website and streamed on Digital IBGE.

The objective is to celebrate the integration between the IBGE and city governments and other mobilizing agents to disseminate and conduct the initial tests of this important Census. The pilot test will assess data collection instruments; the composition of technical teams, which, due to the unprecedented nature of the operation will count on the work of facilitators; and the logistics for covering the territories. 
The scheduled activities will start on June 9, at 2 pm, in  Salvador (BA), at CEAO/UFBA, located at Praça Gen. Inocêncio Galvão, 42. The following launch will be in Goiânia (GO), on June 11, at 10 am, at the auditorium of SES/GO, located at Rua 85, 971. The second step continues in  Manaus (AM), on June 30, at 10 am; Belo Horizonte (MG), on July 1, at 10 am; and Florianópolis (SC), on July 2, at 2 pm. The venues at these three cities will be informed soon.

The president of the IBGE, Marcio Pochmann, spoke about the launch events of the first pilot tests in the cities. “Brazil takes a historical step to make visible a group that has remained hidden, strengthening the commitment with quality statistics, citizenship and fairer and more inclusive public policies. As a result, that solves a historical demand in the Brazilian society.”

The events will follow the same patter in all the cities. The program consists of an opening panel session and a 30-minute technical presentation of the project delivered by technicians from the directorate of Surveys (DPE), the Directorate of Geosciences (DGC) and the Census Division.

The launch of the Census marks the consolidation of a historical demand for official information about the the population experiencing homelessness in Brazil. According to the IBGE Director of Surveys, Gustavo Junger, the initiative means a significant advance in Brazil's statistical production. “The demand for homelessness in Brazil is a historical gap of the IBGE. For decades society has expected to receive information that can improve governmental and academic attention to a phenomenon that has been more and more present in the Brazilian urban area.”

The director remarks that this survey also reinforces IBGE's institutional commitment. “The materialization of the project 1st National Census of the population Experiencing Homelessness is part of the institute's commitment to the mission of portraying Brazil with necessary information for the knowledge of reality and the exercise of citizenship. The country's reality cannot be portrayed while part of the population is not properly represented in its statistical production”.

The full program is avaliable on the Census website and the sessions will be streamed on Digital IBGE. To confirm attendance, send an e-mail to [email protected] informing your city of interest.

Previous regional launches and workshop with census experiences

The regional launches of the 1st National Census of the Population Experiencing Homeless had previous steps in April, marking the start of the national mobilization around this initiative. The first activities occurred in Belém (PA), on April 27, followed by those in Rio de Janeiro (RJ), on April 28, and by São Paulo (SP), on April 30, gathering public managers, reseachers and representatives of civil society.

The opening events had technical presentations of the project and focused on the unprecedented nature of the survey, which is exclusively aimed at the population experiencing homelessness. The occurrence of regional steps reinforces the IBGE strategy to improve its relationship with different territories and local actors, thus consolidating a participatory process in the construction of a nationwide statistical operation. 

Also as a preparatory step for the Census, the IBGE conducted the Workshop of Experiences in the Population Experiencing Homelessness, which gathers specialists, public managers, coordinators of census operations and representatives of civil society of several areas of the country. The meeting had as its main purpose to share experiences, discuss methodologies and and incorporate contributions from different actors engaged in the topic of population experiencing homelessness.