“We are already at 80, when in 2024, for the entire year, it was 116,” thus, “it is easy to conclude that we will surpass the numbers,” stated the coordinator of the Núcleo de Planeamento e Intervenção Sem-Abrigo (NPISA) de Évora, Luís Gamito.
The official spoke in reference to a NPISA meeting in Évora, where objectives to be developed in the municipality and results from the “IN-Visibilidade 2.0” street team’s intervention were presented.
Currently, the NPISA coordinator in Évora indicated, there are 80 homeless individuals being monitored, including both those without roofs (sleeping on the streets) and those without homes (sleeping in temporary accommodations).
“Most of these cases, about 40, involve people without homes, who are staying in guesthouses or rented rooms,” with expenses covered by the city council or Social Security, he noted.
Regarding those without roofs, Luís Gamito clarified that “six to eight people live on the street, and 32 have occupied abandoned houses, especially in the historic center, which obviously do not have livable conditions.”
“In the majority, they are Portuguese. We have some foreigners who came with refugee status, and since they are being supported by Social Security, they end up classified as homeless and are also being monitored,” he mentioned.
Admitting that the number of homeless people in Évora “has been increasing,” the official considered that “there are more people on the streets due to circumstances related to mental illness, dependencies, or lack of work.”
“But the phenomenon in Évora has also grown because there has been greater diligence by entities in identifying situations,” he emphasized.
The NPISA coordinator pointed out the main difficulties as the lack of housing solutions, as the city does not have a temporary shelter center and market prices “are unaffordable for these people, even if they work or receive some kind of subsidy.”
On the other hand, he stressed, “these people are also very volatile; tomorrow they are elsewhere, and the day after, they are back, which also poses challenges for us to work with them towards reintegration.”
Established in 2020, within the framework of the national strategy for this issue, this group includes public and social solidarity sector entities in the city, coordinated by the Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Évora (SCME).
NPISA de Évora implements the national strategy responses in the area and supports the “IN-Visibilidade 2.0” project, which provides support to the homeless through a street team in terms of food, clothing, and personal hygiene, among other services.
The “IN-Visibilidade 2.0” is a street technical team project funded by Portugal 2030, with the consortium composed of SCME, which coordinates, the Associação Pão e Paz, and the Centro Humanitário da Cruz Vermelha de Évora.
