The Summary of Social Indicators 2007 –An Analysis of the Brazilian Population Life Conditions shows that, between 1997 and 2007, there was decrease from 31.6% to 23.5%...

 

The Summary of Social Indicators 2007 – An Analysis of the Brazilian Population Life Conditions shows that, between 1997 and 2007, the percentage of families with household income per capita of up to ½ of the minimum wage fell from 31.6% to 23.5%. In the Northeast, there was decrease from 53.9% to 43.1%. The survey evidenced the social phenomenon called Dinc (Double Income and No Children), since couples without children in which both have some kind of income, made up, in 2007, 3.4% of the households or1.9 million couples, versus less than 1 million couples in 1997. Another trend observed was the existence of 6.7 million persons living alone, among whom 40.8% were elderly ones. The Summary revealed that, in ten years, the percentage of women among undergraduate students increased from 53.6% to 57.1%.

 

The illiteracy rate of persons over 15 years of age decreased from 14.7% to 10%; however, there were still a  number of persons who could not read or write: 14.1 million illiterate ones, among whom 9 million were black or brown, and over 50% who lived in the Northeast Region. Throughout this ten-year period, there was increase of the number of students taking high school at the proper age (15-17), with a change from 26.6% to 44.5%. On the other hand, in these ten years there has been unbalance in terms of the access of black and white persons to higher education. In 1997, 9.6% of the white persons and 2.2% of the black and brown ones aged 25 and over in the country had finished higher education; in 2007, these percentages were 13.4% and 4.0%, respectively. The consequences of educational disparity were reflected in the average incomes of black and brown persons, which were about 50% lower than the income received by white persons.

 

In 2007, about 1/3 of the families lived with monthly income of up to ½ minimum wage per capita. In case of households with children and teenagers aged 0-17, this ratio rose to 45%. Only 54.5% of the households with children up to 6 years of age had all the sanitation services simultaneously. The high index of school attendance does not always means there is quality in the education received. In 2007, 2.1 million children aged 7-14 attended school and could not read and write. The survey also showed that, in 2007, there was increase of the number of children aged 10-15 who worked at home and in the employer’s household.

 

 

 

According to the survey, the income contribution of elderly persons accounts for over half of the total income in 53% of the households with members from this group. These are some of the conclusions of the Summary of Social Indicators2008, which has been elaborated with data from the National Household Sample survey (Pnad 2007), and brings specific chapters about demographic aspects: Education; Households: Families; Marriages, judicial separations and divorces; Color; Women; Children; Elderly and children, teenagers and youngsters. The results are disaggregated by Major Region, Federative Units and their main metropolitan areas.

 

Couples with children make up less than half of the total families

 

PNAD 2007 showed that, among family arrangements with related persons, 48.9% were of the category couples with children, versus 56.6% in 1997. This is mainly due to the decrease of fertility. In the same period, the proportion of family arrangements formed by couples without children increased from 12.9% to 16.0%.

 

 

 

 

In 2007, 6.7 million persons in Brazil were living alone and 40.8% of them were elderly

 

The increase of the percentage of persons living alone (from 8.3% to 11.1%) is a trend which has been observed since 1997, as a consequence of the reduction of mortality and of the rise of life expectancy, especially for women. In 2007, among about 6.7 million unipersonal families existing in the country, 40.8% were formed by persons aged 60 and over.  

 

The average household income per capita in 2007 was R$ 624.00. However, half of the families lived on less than R$ 380 a month, that is, with less than the minimum wage in effect in 2007. By Major Region, the distribution of income in the country remains uneven: half of the Northeastern families lived on up to R$ 214, whereas in the Southeast, the average income was R$ 441.00.

 

In ten years, percentage of families with income below ½ a minimum wage has decreased

 

In the period 1997/2007, the percentage of family arrangements with household income per capita of up to ½ of a minimum wage faced decrease. In 1997, this percentage for the country was 31.6%, but it fell to 23.5% in 2007. In the Northeast, the decrease between 2002 and 2007 was a little above 10 percentage points (from 53.9% to 43.1%), probably as a consequence of public policies aimed at poor families.

 

In 2007, in 50.5% of the families with children, the latter were below 16 years of age. From 1997 to 2007, among families in which all the children were below 16, there was increase of the proportion of monoparental families (with the presence of only one of the partners): from 19.2% to 21.8%, which is in accordance with the data from the civil register about the increase of judicial separations. The percentage of male monoparental families also had slight increase, from 7.8% to 9.8% (from 278 thousand families in 1997 to almost 445 thousand in 2007).

 

Between 1997 and 2007, men, regardless of their position in the family, still had employment rates above those of all other family members, however, with decrease from 84.3% to 82.7%. It is important to observe that the employment rate of children is higher in the families headed by women (44.4%), versus 40.3% in the families headed by men.

 

Brazil had 1.9 million couples without children in which both partners worked

 

Among the 60.1 million family arrangements existing in Brazil, in 2007, about 39.0 million (65%) were couples, and in only 38.6% of these cases, both were working and received income from work.

 

According to some studies, families formed by couples without children living in the household and in which both have their own income have become very common, especially in modern, industrialized societies. This type of arrangement, called DINC (Double Income and No Children) is a family in which the couple can dedicate more time to work and leisure, since they do not have to take care of their offspring. The data from PNAD can be somehow compared to figures for this kind of arrangement. The couples in which both partners had their own income and in which women did not have children represented 3.4% of the households (1.9 million couples). In 58.7% of this kind of couple (which is closer to the concept of DINC), the reference person was up to 34 years of age, which may reflect a delay of fertility, or even the attempt at reaching better positions in the job market. The relatively high incomes of this type of couple (3.5 minimum wages per capita) place them among the 10% with the highest incomes in the Brazilian population.   

 

 

6.4% of the teenagers aged 15-17 are mothers

 

Between 1997 and 2007, the percentage of women at reproductive age (15-49) with children born alive remained at about 63%, but the number of women with only one child increased from 25.8% to 30.7%. In 2007, the percentage of teenagers aged 15-17 with children was 6.3% and this figure remained at the same levels of 1997. The North, Northeast and Central West Regions had the highest percent figures, 9.4%, 7.7% and 7.5%, respectively, and the Southeast and the South Regions, the lowest ones (both with 5%).

 

Level of schooling is highest among women, mainly in the North and in the Northeast Regions

 

Brazilian women in urban areas of the country have, on average, one more year of schooling than men. In the Federal District, women had the highest average number of years of schooling in the country (10.4). Schooling among women is always higher than among men, mainly in the North and Northeast, especially in Piauí, where there is a difference of almost two years between the to groups.

 

Even in these areas, where cultural values are certainly more traditional, women have been a highlight as reference persons in their families. In the North and Northeast, the percentage of women in this condition is 34.7% and 32.1%, respectively.

 

In 2007, among family arrangements with a female reference person, 52.9% were of the monoparental type (without the presence of one of the partners). In unipersonal units, the percentage of women is higher as a consequence of the highest life expectancy of women. It is also important to mention the low occurrence of family arrangements with male heads of household without the presence of a partner (3.3%) and with children.

 

 

 

Percentage of women and men in directing positions are more balanced in the North and Northeast Regions

 

In 2007, only 4.2% of the women (versus 5% of the men) were employed in the category of directors, in general. The data of PNAD, to a certain extent, contradict common sense in terms of the supremacy of traditional cultural values to determine working positions taken by men and women in the North and Northeast. In these areas, the differences between the male and female groups in directing positions are lower than in the Federative Units of the South and Southeast, where cultural values are supposedly less traditional.

 

Whereas in Piauí, for example, the percentage of women (3.6%) even surpasses the percentage of men (3.4%), in the Federal District, Rio Grande do Sul and Espírito Santo the percentage of women in directing positions is 1.7 percentage points below the same indicators for men. The same way, the differences found between men and women in Pará, Ceará, Pernambuco and Bahia are much lower than in the Federative Units in which the cultural values might not be so relevant to determine the holders of positions which require more qualification and authority. An explanation to this fact may be the highest level of schooling of women especially in the areas regarded as more conservative.

 

In ten years, percentage of undergraduate women increases from 53.1% to 57.1%

 

In 2007, among higher-education students, 57.1% were women, representing significant increase in relation to 1997 (53.6%). In the same period, the percentage relative to men fell from 46.4% to 42.9%. However, there is still a significant number of women who cannot read or write, both in Brazil (7.2 million) and in Latin American countries.

 

In some countries of the area, young women were successful in the literacy process, in comparison with previous generations. In Brazil and in Bolivia, for example, the illiteracy rate of women aged 15 and over is about 6 times higher than that of women aged 15-24.

 

52% of the illiterate persons aged 15 and over are in the Northeast

 

In 2007, Brazil still had 14.1 million illiterate persons among persons aged 15 years and over - a figure of 10%. There was decrease in relation to 1997, when this figure was 14.7%. The spatial distribution of this group showed, in 2007, concentration in the Northeast (52%).

 

Household income is relevant in the analysis of illiteracy cases. In the group of the population with household income per capita of up to ½ a minimum wage, about 18% were illiterate in 2007; in the classes with income above two minimum wages, the percentage was 1.4%. The phenomenon of illiteracy is also very common in rural areas. The rural rate (23.3%) was three times higher than the urban (7.6%), although, when compared to data in 1997 (rural rate of 32.0%), significant reduction is observed.

 

The universalization of primary education is a goal to be reached until 2015 by the countries which have signed the Millennium Goals, including Brazil. A way of measuring the efforts in this respect is to register the illiteracy rate of the population aged 15-24. In 2007, 5.3% of the persons in this age group were illiterate, and there was significant decrease in relation to 1997 (12.0%). However, in the North (6.0%) and Northeast Regions (6.5%), despite their significant reductions, there are still rates which are almost twice as those in the remaining areas.

 

The programs to promote Literacy and Education of Youngsters and Adults may bring the right solution to this kind of problem.  In 2007, 2.6 million persons declared to be attending this type of course, and less than half of them (45.9%) were in a course equivalent to elementary education and 20.7% in literacy courses.

 

Percentage of high-school students at the proper age (15-17) increased from 26.6% to 44.5%

 

School attendance increased significantly between 1997 and 2007. In the group aged 0-6, in 1997, 29.2% were attending school, and this percentage changed to 36.5% in 2002 and reached 44.5% in 2007. In the sub-group aged 4-6, the percentage in 2007 was almost 78%. In the group aged 15-17, the attendance rate also increased, from 77.3% in 1997 to 82.1% in 2007.

 

The indicator that best qualifies the status of education of this age group (15-17) is the net attendance rate¹. Only about 48% of the teenagers were taking high school, in 2007, despite the improvement in this rate, which was 26.6% in 1997. The Northeast region had considerable increase; however, it still had the lowest rate among the areas, in 2007(34.5%). The Southeast had the best net attendance of teenagers aged 15-17, about 58%, an indicator which reached 66.7% in the state of São Paulo. This indicator is more favorable to women: about 53.8% were taking the proper level, versus 42.5% of men.

 

Analyzed in terms of household income, the net attendance rate of teenagers aged 15-17 shows a very unfavorable situation for the 20% with the lowest incomes (28.2%), if compared to that of the 20% with the highest incomes (77%). In 1997, the rate for the first 1/5 of income was 6.1%, and changed to 16.8% in 2002.

 

In the group of youngsters aged 18-24, 30.9% informed they used to attend school. In this age group, students were expected to be in the university, but much more than half (57.6%) of them were taking elementary school, high school or other (university entrance tests, adult elementary education or  literacy courses for adults). A total 42.4% were in undergraduation or graduation courses, a rate which was 21.5% in 1997.  

 

The delay grade/age in elementary education is used in the analysis of school entrance. In 1997, the percentage of developmentally delayed students was a little above 43.0%, falling, in 2002 to 32.3% and reaching 25.7% in 2007². The South and Southeast Regions had, in 2007, the lowest percentages, about 16.0%. Some highlights are the high rates in the North (35.4%) and Northeast (38.8%) which, in 2007, did not reach the levels of the South and Southeast in 1997.  

 

None of the age groups aged up to 17 years reached the average schooling expected for the age

 

The average years of schooling of the population aged 10-17 increased between 1997 and 2007 for all the age groups. However, the average did not reach the four complete years of schooling for children aged 11. According to the educational system, they should have at least this level of schooling, but who had, in fact, 3.3 years. The same occurred in the case of children aged 14, who had only 5.8 years of schooling, but should have at least 7. At the age of 17, Brazilian teenagers had not reached the expected schooling level (10 years), and had an average of only 7.9 years of schooling.

 

In the Brazilian population aged 15 and over, the average schooling, in 2007, was 7.3 years. There was increase of 1.5 year in relation to 1997 (5.8 years) – which evidences a slow progress of this indicator. The differences between urban (7.8 years of schooling) and rural areas (4.5%) are very significant.

 

Gap between whites and blacks with higher education increases between 1997 and 2007

 

In 2007, the attendance rate to higher education courses for students aged 18-15 in the Brazilian population (19.4%) was almost three times higher than that of blacks and browns (6.8%). This scenario was repeated, with little change, in all the areas.

 

At this level of education, in all the ages between 18 and 25, black and brown students could not reach, in 2007, the attendance rate whites had reached ten years before. In this time gap, the difference in favor of white persons, instead of causing the decrease, led to increase, with change from 9.6 percentage points, at the age of 21, in 1997, to 15.8 percentage points in 2007.

 

This unevenness is expressed in the data relative to persons who finished higher education, which presents very different levels between whites and blacks; this scenario has become problematic as well. In 1997, 9.6% of the white persons and 2.2% of the blacks and browns had finished higher education in the country; in 2007, these percentages were, respectively, 13.4% and 4.0%. The gap between the two groups, which was 7.4 percentage points, changed to 9.4 in 2007.

 

Functional illiteracy falls most significantly among blacks and browns, but differences remain

 

In relation to illiteracy rates, functional illiteracy and school attendance, there have also been significant differences. In absolute figures, in 2007, out of the little more than 14 million illiterate Brazilians, almost 9 million were black or brown. In relative terms, the illiteracy rate of the white population was 6.1% for persons aged 1 years or over, being above 14% for blacks and browns, that is, almost twice as that of white people.

 

Compared to functional illiteracy, there was most significant reduction in the case of black and brown persons, between 1997 and 2007. But the difference in favor of white persons remained: the functional illiteracy rate for this population (16.1%) was more than ten percentage points lower than that of black and browns (27.5%) – and this rate for blacks and browns is still higher that that for white people ten years before.

 

Another way of approaching the matter is by observing the distribution by color or race of the population aged 15-24 who attended school. In the group aged 15-17, about 82.5% of the white persons were enrolled in school, and 58.7% of them were taking high school, which is in accordance with this age group. Among blacks and browns, 79.8% were enrolled in school, but only 39.4% were taking high school. On the other hand, the percentage of white persons among students aged 18-24 in higher education was 57.9%; the figure relative to blacks and browns was about 25%.

The average years of schooling of the population aged 15 or over means, once more, an advantage of about 2 years for whites (8.1 years of schooling) in relation to blacks and browns (6.3); this difference has remained constant.

 

Income/hour of white persons with 12 or more years of schooling is 40% above that of black ones with the same schooling

 

The consequences of educational differences are reflected in the average income of black and brown persons, which are always lower (about 50%) of those of white ones. Even when income/hour is considered according to the years of schooling, white persons have advantages in all of them, receiving higher income/hour than blacks and browns, in the group with 12 or more years of schooling.

 

The distribution of persons by color or race among the poorest 10% and among the richest 1% shows that white persons were little more than 25% of the poorest, and over 86% of the richest ones. On the other hand, blacks and browns were almost 74% among the poorest and only accounted for over 12% of the richest ones. The changes of these percentages by Major Region, in spite of reflecting the distribution differences by color in the population as a whole, keep the differences.

 

There is also systematic decrease of the percentage of blacks and brows as there is increase of the income tenths, with steady rise of the participation of white persons. In the first 1/10, where the poorest ones are, can be seen almost 15%of the black or white population and only a little more than 5% of the white ones, and in the last 1/10, the richest ones, resulting in almost 16% of the whites and only 4% of the blacks and browns.

 

 

 

Almost half of the youngsters live in households with income per capita of up to ½ of a minimum wage

 

In 2007, among the total 60.1 million Brazilian families, 28.1 million (47.7%) had at least a child or teenager aged up to 14 years. Although poverty in the country has decreased in the last 10 years, it still affects children and teenagers more severely than it does to adults. In 2007, PNAD showed that 30.0% of the Brazilian population lived on a monthly income of up to ½ a minimum wage per capita. Considering households with children and teenagers aged 0-17, this percentage increased to 46%. Even more important is the percentage of households with monthly income per capita of up to ¼ of a minimum wage, which reaches 19%. On the other hand, only 1.7% of this population segment had monthly income of over 5 minimum wages per capita.  

 

 

In the Northeast, 39.2% of the children under 6 years of age have household monthly income per capita of up to ¼ of a minimum wage

 

Data of PNAD 2007 show that the younger the child, the bigger their vulnerability, no matter what part of the country is considered. The Northeast (51.6% of the total population) is the Region with the highest percentage of persons who have household monthly income of up to ½ a minimum wage (SM) per capita. When considering only the young population (aged 0-17) of this Region, the percentage of persons with this range of income increases to 68.1%. Among them, 36.9% made only ¼ of a minimum wage for the entire household. Among children under 6 years of age, the percentage of those who lived on up to ¼ of a minimum wage is even more significant: 39.2%.

 

The South and Southeast Regions (17.8% and 18.6%) are the ones with the lowest percentage of persons with household income of up to ½ of a minimum wage per capita. As a consequence, the percentage of children in this age group is also lower in these regions (30.0% of the population aged 0-17 in the South and 32% in the Southeast).

 

Over half of the households with children aged up to 6 years had all the sanitation services

 

Despite the improvements in the population life conditions, the number of households with children aged up to 6 years who have adequate sanitation³ conditions is still low. In 2007, only 54.5% of the households had, simultaneously, all kinds of sanitation services. However, there is great disparity between households with income per capita below ½ of a minimum w age, of which 38.4% have adequate sanitation conditions, and households of families with income of over five minimum wages per capita, with children (70.3%).

 

Once more, it is possible to observe that children aged 6 are in more vulnerable conditions, once considering the total households in the country, the percentage of those which have this kind of service is the highest (62.4%), even among the households with household income of up to ½ a minimum wage per capita (42.0%).

 

These data are relevant, since a big number of infant deaths are related to lack of sanitation, such as, for example, diarrhea, and the improvement of the sanitation level has direct impact on infant mortality rates. It is important to highlight, however, than in 1997, there was increase of supply of these services in the households with children.

 

In 2007, 2.1 million children aged 7-14 attended schools but could not read and write

 

Although among children and teenagers aged 7-14 (the age group which corresponds to elementary education), education is almost completely disseminated (97.6%), the survey results show that this high level of school attendance does not always mean quality of learning. Among the 28.3 million children aged 7-14, who, according to their age should have undergone the literacy process, were found 2.4 million (8.4%) who could not read or write. This does not mean these children were not enrolled in a school: 2.1 million of them, that is, 87.2% of those who could not read or write were attending an educational institution. Out of this group of 2.1 million, 1.2 million lived in the Northeast of the country.

 

 

Among children aged 10, the age at which they are supposed to be taking the 4th grade, 85.6% of the children who could not read or write were attending school. At 14, when they are supposed to be finishing elementary school, the percentage of children who could not read or write was lower (1.7%), which represents 58.1 thousand persons. However, almost half of these children (45.8%) were in school. What calls attention in the number of children aged 14 who were out of school, about 204.8 thousand.

 

Considering teenagers aged 15-17 who should be attending high school, the class of income affects their level of school attendance, which, for this group as a whole is 82.1%; there is significant difference between the poorest 20% (76.3%) and the richest 20% (93.6%). Nevertheless, these results are better than those in 1997 (55.7% and 87.7%). In the period, the difference between the richest and the poorest decreased from 31.2 to 17.4 percentage points. The difference occurs in all the Major Regions and can be explained, above all, by the situation of poor youngsters, who need to work in order to help their families.  

 

Percentage of youngsters aged 16 and 17 fully dedicated to school increased

 

The analysis of the condition of activity of youngsters aged 16 and 17 in the period 1997/2007 shows that there was more interest in education. The percentage of persons who only worked, decreased from 16.5% to 10.2% and of those who performed household tasks, from 11.1 to 8.3%. There was increase of the percentage of persons who dedicated only to their studies, from 45.5% in 1997, to 54.8%, in 2007.

 

Before reaching 18 years of age, many youngsters need to share their time between work and study. However, after 18, studying becomes a privilege of an even smaller part of the population. Among those aged 18 and 19, 25.8% have their studies the only activity, and in the group aged 20-24, only 10.1%. The percentage of youngsters who only work and do not study is 32.3% for the group aged 18 and 19, and 50.4% for the group aged 20-24.

 

 

 

 

Percentage of children aged 10-14 who work in the household increases

 

Children who work have a lower degree of school attendance than those who do not work. Whereas the attendance rate of employed children aged 5-15 was 89.6%, the attendance of those who did not work was 95.4%.

 

Agricultural activity uses a slightly bigger number of children than non-agricultural (1.27 million versus 1.23 million). Among children aged 5-9, the percentage of those who are involved in agricultural activities is bigger (74.1%) than among those aged 10-15 (49.2%). The slight predominance of agricultural activity is experienced by the analysis of working places of children aged 10 – 15. Farms and ranches are the establishments which use most use child labor, employing 36.5% of these children in 2007. In 1997, the percentage was even higher (43.4%). Shops, gas stations and factories come in the second position, employing 24.5% of the children. This percentage also fell in comparison with data in 1997 (26.9%). On the other hand, there was increase of the proportion of children who performed household tasks. A total 5.4% of the children who performed household tasks worked in their own household; in 2007 this figure was 8.0%. In the employer’s household, these figures were 8.0% of children in 1997 and 9.1% in 2007. There was slight increase of the proportion of children who worked in the streets or in public areas: from 5.0% in 1997 to 5.7% in 2007. However, in absolute terms, there was decrease, from 184 thousand to 134 thousand children working in this type of place.  

 

 

Most of the working children (43.2%) accounted, in 2007, for 10% to 30% of the household income. About 41.5% contributed to 10% of household income and only 15.4%, to over 30% of it. When the age at which they start working is considered, it is observed that a big number of the employed children aged 10-17, 19.1%, entered the labor market very early, even before 9 years of age.

 

In 2007, the average number of residents per household was 3.4 persons

 

According to PNAD 2007, the number of private household in Brazil reached about 56.4 million. The average number of household members, which was 3.8 in 1997 and 3.6 in 2002, fell to 3.4 persons in 2007, as a result of the decrease of fertility and the reduction of the average size of families.

 

The proportion of urban households in 2007 reached 84.8%. Compared to 1997 (81.1%), this figure increased 3.7 percentage points in 10 years, reflecting the urbanization rate. The percentage of urban households with monthly income of up to ½ a minimum wage per capita in 2007 decreased in comparison with results in the years 1997 and 2002, changing from 25.5% in 1997 to 27.4% in 2002 and falling to 19.4% in 2007.

 

Increase of the elderly population was over twice the total population increase

 

In 2008, the Summary analyzed the differences between the life conditions of elderly persons in the city and showed that among the almost 20 million elderly persons aged 60 or over (10.5% of the total population), 16.5 million lived in the urban area, and 3.4 million in the rural area. In the metropolitan area of São Paulo, there were, in 2007, 2.1 million elderly persons, whereas in the metropolitan area of Rio de Janeiro, 1.7 million (14.7% of the total population in the metropolitan area of Rio de Janeiro). Almost half of the total number of elderly persons in the rural areas of the country lived in the Northeast (1.6 million), whereas in urban areas, the Southeast Region had 8.7 million elderly ones. Whereas, in the period 1997 – 2007, there was relative increase of the Brazilian population of about 21.6%, in the group aged 60, this change was 47.8%, and reached 65% in the group aged 80 and over.

 

The South Region concentrated almost half (9.4 million) of the elderly aged 60 and over in the country, followed by the Northeast (5.1 million elderly) and South (3.2 million). The Central West and North Regions (with, respectively, 1.2 and 1 million elderly), gathered relatively smaller groups in this range of age. In 2007, São Paulo and the biggest number of elderly in the country (4.7 million), followed by Rio de Janeiro and Minas Gerais (with approximately 2.2 million) and Bahia (1.4 million). Roraima (21 thousand), Amapá (32 thousand) and Acre (39 thousand) concentrated the smaller groups of persons aged 60 and over.

 

2.5 million elderly persons lived in situation of poverty: 1.2 million of the lived in the Northeast

 

According to the Summary, over 2.5 million elderly persons (12.2%) in the country can be said to be living in poverty, in households with monthly income per capita of up to ½ a minimum wage. The percentage of elderly persons who lived in households with this range of income in rural areas reached 20.2% of the total number of elderly persons in these areas, whereas in urban areas it was 11.1%. The Northeast Region (24.2%) reached its highest percentage of elderly in situation of poverty and the South (6.5%), the lowest. In absolute figures, the main elderly groups aged 60 and over in situation of poverty lived in Bahia (334 thousand), Minas Gerais (265 thousand) and São Paulo (248 thousand). The main urban/rural contrast occurred in the Southeast Region (6.8%/16.1%) and the lowest in the South Region (6.3%/7.1%). On the contrary, in the group receiving monthly household income of over 2 minimum wages per capita, the percentage of elderly persons in urban areas (26.5%) was more than three times higher than that in the rural area (8.1%).

 

Rise of life expectancy results in intergenerational families

 

The Summary of Social Indicators 2008 investigated the phenomenon of intergenerational families, as a consequence of the increase of life expectancy, which results in the coexistence of up to three generations in a single household. According to SIS, except for unipersonal households and those of couples without children, the figure reached is 9.7 million and 38 million household members. Among these, approximately 30.2% were children, teenagers and youngsters (0-24 years); 36.2% were aged 25-59; 29.1% were aged 60-79 years and 4.6% were aged 80 and over. By Region, the North and Northeast, places where the average number of children is bigger, the percentage of children and teenagers aged 0-24 is higher, 41% and 36%, showing that the phenomenon of intergenerational families is even more pronounced.

 

In 53% of the households with elderly persons, they account for over half of the family income

 

The contribution of the elderly, in 53% of the households in which they live, represents over half of the total household income; this situation was even more common in the Northeast (63.5% of the households). In 2007, 84.4% of the13.8 million elderly aged 65 and over received more retirement money or pensions and this proportion had already been reached before, in 1997. There were 61.2% of retired persons, 14.8% of pension receivers and 8.4% retired pension-receivers in the country. The percentage of elderly persons living in rural areas and receiving benefits was a little higher than in urban locations (88.0% and 83.6%). In the Northeast and South Regions, there were more striking differences. The percentage of elderly persons who received pension benefits increased in the period 1997-2007: from 4.6% to 8.4%. In the rural area of the South Region, the percentage of persons who received both benefits reached 19.4% in 2007. Brazilian elderly aged 65 and over who continued working made up 22.5% (about 3.1 million elderly ones), in 2007, and most of them (74.7%) were retired. In the rural area, these percentages were 46.9% and 84.9% and, in the urban area, 17.6% and 70%.

 

 

There are more elderly women than men in the cities and more elderly men than women in the country

 

The Summary confirmed that the number of women is above the number of men both in the country and in urban areas, whereas in rural areas there are more men than women. In the country, there were, in 2007, 79 men for each 100 women aged 60 and over. In the group aged 65 and over, there were 76 men for each 100 women, reaching only 72 men for each 100 women, in the group aged 70 years and over. In rural areas, the sex ratio was 107 men for each 100 women, whereas in urban areas, it was 75 men for each 100 women. The South Region has the biggest difference between both sexes (67 men for each 100 women), followed closely by the Southeast (69 men for each 100 women). These figures result from the fact that female rural/urban migration is higher than male (elderly women move more frequently to cities in order to live with their children/grandchildren or relatives) and from the fact that men have a bigger participation in typically rural activities.

 

Over half of the elderly in rural areas did not have schooling or had less than one year of schooling

 

The Summary showed that the proportion of elderly persons aged 60 and over without instruction or with less than one year of schooling, in 2007, was 32.2% in the country, being 27.5% in the total of urban area and 55% among the elderly living in rural areas. Over half (52.2%) of the elderly persons in the Northeast belonged to this schooling group. In the North, the percentage was 45.9% of the elderly, and this state was followed by the Central West (36.9%), Southeast (22.8%) and South (21.5%). Piauí (58.2%) was the Federative Unit with the highest percentage of elderly persons without or with less than 1 year of schooling, whereas Rio de Janeiro (15.9%) had the lowest percentage. In the South, percent differences between elderly persons with low schooling rates in urban areas (20.5%) and rural areas (25.5%) are lower than in other areas, for example, when comparing the urban (40.6%) and the rural Northeast (70.0%).

 

Fertility rate remains below the minimum level to guarantee population replacement

 

The Summary revealed that total fertility in the country decreased from 1.99 in 2006, to 1.95, in 2007, being below the level which guarantees population replacement (2.1 children /woman). In 1997, the rate was 2.54. The North Region (2.60 children/woman) had the highest fertility rate, whereas the Southeast (1.62) had the lowest one. By Federative Unit, the rate ranged from 2.66 (Amapá) and Rio de Janeiro (1.57), significantly below the replacement level.

 

The average demographic density of the Brazilian population in 2007 was 22.3 inhabitant/ km². The North Region, which has 45.2% of the total area in the country and 8.1% of the population had only 4.0 inhabitants/ km², whereas the Southeast concentrated over 42% of the total population and had the highest density, with 87.4 inhabitants / km². The sex ratio in Brazil (95.3 men for each 100 women) is occurs partially due to male mortality. In terms of metropolitan areas, Curitiba had the same result as the national average, whereas Recife, Rio de Janeiro, Belém, and Fortaleza showed that, for each group of 100 women, there were between 87.8 and 89.1 men, only.

 

In 2007, the total dependence ratio⁴ was 48.6%. The lowest ratio was that of the state of Santa Catarina, 41.4%, whereas in Acre, the figure was 66.5%.

 

In ten years, life expectancy at birth increased 3.4 years

 

The absolute and relative increase of the elderly population in Brazil is a consequence of the rise of life expectancy at birth combined with the fall of the overall fertility rate. In fact, the average life expectancy at birth in the country in 2007 was 72.7 years of age. Average life expectancy at birth, between 1997 and 2007, increased 3.4 years, with women in a more favorable situation than men (with changes from 73.2 to 76.5 years, among women, and from 65.5 to 69.0 years among men). As a consequence, the gross mortality rate, which represents the frequency with which there are deaths in a population, fell from 6.60‰ (over 6.6 deaths/1,000 inhabitants), in 1997, to 6.23‰ (6.2 deaths/1,000 ‰), in 2007. Infant mortality rate remains on a falling trend, having changed from 35.20‰ (35.2/1,000) to 24.32‰ between 1997 and 2007. Rio Grande do Sul was the state which had the lowest infant mortality rate (13.50‰) and Alagoas, with 50.00‰, the highest one, in 2007.

 

Persons born in the Northeast make up more than half of Brazilian emigrants

 

The distribution of the population by Major Region of the current place of residence by place of birth, in 2007, keeps the same trends observed in the beginning of the 1990’s, showing stability of Brazilian migration movements. The Central West had the lowest number of natural population (69.7%) and, consequently, the highest number of migrants (30.3%). Out of these, 22.8% come from the Northeast and Southeast Regions. It is worth mentioning that Roraima and the Federal District are the tow places in which can be found the lowest percentages of natural population, resulting in a bigger number of migrants in the composition of their resident population. In 2007, the total accumulated number of migrants by Major Region was about 19.7 million persons. The most important group in the total Brazilian migrants was that of persons born in the Northeast, with 10.5 million (53.5% of the total emigrants). The Southeast is still the biggest established point of attraction of Northeastern emigrants, once 66.7% moved to this area. It was observed that, among the 692 thousand persons who came from foreign countries, 71.6% had the Southeast Region as their destination.

 

Occurrence of formal marriages undergoes reversal between 2002 and 2006

 

The data about marriages, judicial separations and divorces of SIS 2008 come from the 2006 edition of Civil register Statistics. In 1997, 2002 and 2006, the behavior of nuptiality⁵ underwent different changes by area, always increasing from 2002 to 2006, but not reaching the level of 1997 in the Southeast and South. Results for the country show the reversal of this decrease, which was 6.4‰ (6.4 in each thousand) in 1997, to 5.7‰ in 2002, and to 6.5‰ in 2006. The increase between 2002 and 2006 is related to the biggest number of couples who made formal their consensual unions, encouraged by the civil code which was renewed in 2002 and by collective marriages promoted since then.

 

In 2006, the highest nuptiality rates among women occurred in the age-groups of 20-24 years (30. 0‰) and 25-29 years (29.1‰). There was significant decrease of nuptiality rate among women under 19 years of age, compared to data in 1997. The same rate in group aged 30-34 fell from 24.2‰ to 14.8‰, evidencing the change in the age at which women engage in a formal marriage, if it is either the first one or not.

 

There was increase of the nuptiality rate of men in all the age groups starting at 25 years of age, and decrease in the two younger groups (15-19 and 20-24 years) compared to results in 1997.  The rates observed for men are, systematically higher than those for women in the groups at higher age, especially the group aged 60 and over: from 3.4‰ for men and 0.9‰ for women.

 

In 2006, 82.5% of the marriages involved single persons. However, there was steady decline of this type of marriage, with change from 90.1% in 1997 to 85.2% in 2006.

 

There has been growing proportion of marriages between divorced and single persons. The highest percentages are observed in the case of divorced men who marry single women. There was also increase of the number of marriages among divorced persons.

 

 

______________________________________________________________

 

¹ Which reflects the adequacy age/school grade studied.

² The results presented for 2007 refer only to the universe of persons who have declared to be taking elementary schools with duration of eight years (71.8%). This cut was established to match the comparison with years 1997 and 2002.

³ Households with simultaneous occurrence of public water supply system, sewage services and daily garbage collection.

⁴ Dependence ration is the coefficient of the population aged 0-14 and 65 years and over by the population segment aged 15-64 years of age.

⁵ Legal nuptiality is obtained by the division of the number of marriages by the number of inhabitants and the multiplication of this result by one thousand. Marriages and other items covered in this study considered the population aged 15 years or over.