Cáritas Diocesanas de Vic served 6,272 people in 2022, 21% more than in 2021. The report made public by the entity reveals that 58% of users have problems having a decent home. Some live precariously, either by squatting or subletting, and others directly have nowhere to live.
Precisely, access to decent housing is one of the challenges proposed by Cáritas, as detailed by the Bishop of Vic and president of Cáritas, Romà Casanova, who assures that they are concerned about “the great job insecurity” and that 30% of the people served are in an irregular situation.
The technical secretary of Cáritas Diocesanas de Vic, Fran Quirós, has pointed out that they are “concerned” about the “precariousness” in housing and jobs and that 35% of its users have been using the Cáritas service for more than 4 years. “We have to find the resources to get them out of this cycle of poverty,” Quirós points out.
In addition, Quirós has also explained that the difficulties in accessing a register are growing more and more and has said that 15% of the people they serve are not registered. For this reason, from Cáritas they have made an appeal for the municipalities to “register” all the people who request it. The entity notes that having children has become a factor “of social exclusion”.
On the other hand, Cáritas has also seen a drop in the number of people who offer to be volunteers. In 2022 they had 870, 10% less than in 2021. According to Quirós, this is mainly due to the age of the volunteers, who are getting older and it is difficult for young people to join.
Cáritas Diocesanas de Vic serves a total of 440,000 inhabitants spread over the counties of Anoia, Bages, Osona, Moianès, Lluçanès, Ripollès, Vallès Oriental and Selva.
