Begging and homelessness in the Brussels Capital Region: the intersection between multidimensional deprivation and (in)visibility

This project aims to study the multidimensional poverty of the socially excluded group of people who beg in the Brussels-Capital Region (BCG), with special attention to homelessness and housing exclusion. The project documents three aspects: population size; living conditions, deprivation, and quality of life; and their relationship with the general public. The project partners (government agencies in BCG) indicate that the primary policy challenge is the invisibility, the dearth of reliable evidence about the needs and deprivation of people who beg. Given this lack of systematic information, the bulk of the project consists of the collection of reliable data, and analyses with cutting-edge techniques. Systematic observations enable the construction of a sampling frame, estimations of the population’s size, and begging yields. A survey from a large sample of people who beg, allows us to gain an in-depth insight into their deprivation and living conditions. Finally, survey experiments with the general public document the popular assessment of begging in the public space.

Keywords:Hidden populations, Underground economy, Precariousness, Multidimensional deprivation, Poverty

Disciplines:Cultural economics, economic sociology, economic anthropology, Social problems, Welfare economics, Social work not elsewhere classified