|
Youth and Elderly Population in Brazil
Youth
The population under age eighteen was only 30.7 percent of the total
population in 1991. This significant decrease relative to previous
decades--it was over 42.6 percent in 1960--was almost entirely the
result of rapid fertility decline. Compared with developed countries,
as mentioned above, Brazil still has a relatively young population.
Overall, school enrollment
in the early 1990s reached about 90 percent of school-age children
(seven to fourteen), although there was wide variation, with lower
coverage among rural and low-income populations. There were also
high levels of repetition, and only a minority of those who entered
first grade completed the eight grades of fundamental schooling.
One reason for the high dropout rate was child labor. In 1990, 18
percent of the children between the ages of ten and fourteen participated
in economic
activity.
Because of marital instability, unwanted pregnancies, and above
all poverty, there are thousands of apparently homeless "street
children" (meninos de rua ) in Brazil. The numbers require
cautious use because, in addition to about 10,000 children who actually
live in the streets, this category also includes many children who
work or otherwise generate income to help their families. Truly
homeless street children constitute a small minority. They attracted
considerable public and media attention nationally and internationally
in the early 1990s because of their high visibility and frequent
petty thievery, as well as cases of violent retaliation, including
murder, by the police and local businesspeople.
At least officially, minors have long been protected by the Brazilian
legal system. Judges in juvenile cases (juizes de menores ) protect
their interests, and a network of institutions, in theory, cares
for their welfare. In 1990, in response to the problems of youth,
the Collor
government passed special legislation to establish children's
rights, known as the Children's Statute, and created the Brazilian
Center of Infancy and Adolescence (Centro Brasileiro de Infância
e Adolescência--CBIA) to carry out special programs for children
in these age-groups. The government also promoted the establishment
of federal, state, and municipal councils of childhood and adolescence,
which included participants from government agencies and civil society.
The National Street Children's Movement is an NGO. The United Nations
Children's Fund (UNICEF) developed the Pact for Childhood, and the
National Conference of Brazilian Bishops (Conferência Nacional
dos Bispos do Brasil--CNBB) supported the Children's Pastoral Service.
The Elderly
The proportion of elderly in the population increases as fertility
declines and longevity increases. The absolute numbers grow faster
than the total population. The proportion of the Brazilian population
age sixty-five and older grew from 6.4 percent in 1960 to 7.6 percent
in 1980 and 8 percent in 1991, or about 11.7 million. By 2020 the
number is expected to increase to 15 percent of the population,
or about 33 million. Brazil faces particular problems with the aged
because of difficulties in employing them (younger and better trained
workers are preferred over middle-aged workers) and a lack of appropriate
means to care for them. As people live longer, the number of siblings
and children drops, and population mobility increases. Consequently,
older people are less likely to have children or other relatives
living nearby who are willing and able to care for them. In 1996
the country was shocked by the number of deaths of elderly living
in very poor conditions in publicly supported homes for senior citizens,
especially the case of the Santa Genoveva Clinic in Rio
de Janeiro.
The government-run social security system provides minimal pensions
for retired people, including those in rural areas who did not contribute
to the system as employees. However, health care becomes expensive
in old age, especially for the so-called degenerative diseases,
and the cost of private health
insurance becomes prohibitive. Retired persons were successful in
organizing pressure groups to protect the real value, after inflation,
of their pensions in the early 1990s by keeping them pegged to the
minimum wage. Nonetheless, these pensions were still far from being
sufficient to care for the needs of most elderly persons.
Data as of April 1997
|
|
