Belgium

YOUNITED BELGIUM

Younited Belgium is a social sports project designed to motivate and help homeless people reintegrate into society. Made up of 28 teams from around Belgium, Younited works through a combination of sports and social activities, and aims to raise awareness and challenge stereotypes of homelessness as well as offering players a chance to build their confidence, improve their self image, and feel supported.

ORGANISATION DETAILS

PARTICIPANTS

Men and women with no home, in temporary dwellings, in shelters, affected by substance abuse, and undocumented immigrants.

LOCATIONS

Across Belgium, including Namur, Antwerp, Ronse, Mons, Brussels, Tongerlo, Gent, Lier and Antwerp.

Country statistics

14 out of 189 in Human Development Index rating (UNDP, 2019)

$45,750 Average annual salary per person (World Bank, 2021)

14.8% of population living below the national poverty line (UNDP, 2019)

Belgium has a population of 11.7 million, mostly concentrated in the northern two-thirds of the country and the southeast more thinly populated. It is considered to have one of the highest population densities in the world, 98.1% of people live in urban areas. As of 2019, the unemployment rate was 5.36%, and youth unemployment, between the ages of 15-24, was 15.3% (CIA Factbook, 2020).

The capital city, Brussels, has the largest homeless population in Belgium, with many of these individuals being migrants (Borgen Project, 2020).

In 2019 Belgium had 27,742 asylum applications, mainly comprised of people from Syria, Afghanistan, and Turkey (UNHCR, 2021). Belgium does experience harsh winters, which adds to the homelessness crisis. There are not enough resources to support all homeless individuals which overwhelms homeless initiatives and charities (Borgen Project, 2020).

From one count in November 2016, there were 3,386 people experiencing homelessness in Brussels. This is a 96% increase since 2008. (Feansta, 2019).

A study in 2022 found that more women and children were becoming homeless in Belgium. The study of four regions, documented 3,847 homeless people. One third of people found to be homeless were women, while a quarter were children.

This study only covered people in emergency shelters and in centres offering support, and is estimated to be only one third of the total figures (Brussels Times, 2022).