Cáritas Base 25 Users Jump 25% Amid Tenerife Housing Crisis, Funding Rejected.

Cáritas' Base 25 housing program has seen a significant increase in users, growing by 25% in the last four years, both in the number of individuals and households it assists. This substantial rise, particularly after the pandemic, highlights the severe housing crisis and homelessness in Tenerife, which together create a cycle of social exclusion and vulnerability.

The program's records show a clear increase in people facing housing insecurity between 2020 and 2024. In 2020, 552 families and 1,546 individuals were supported, including 598 minors. By 2024, these figures had climbed to 733 households and 1,848 individuals (553 minors). This represents a 33% increase in families and a 20% increase in individuals receiving assistance. In 2023 alone, 685 families and 1,791 individuals were helped, with 597 of them being minors. While statistics can seem impersonal, they reveal the scale of a serious social problem affecting real people.

In the last two years, Base 25 has assisted 3,600 people, and this trend is expected to continue into 2025. The program is effective because it intervenes before evictions or displacements occur. It offers vital support such as legal advice, mediation between landlords and tenants, and help with monthly rent payments.

The program's success relies on its dedicated team. A multidisciplinary group, including social worker and coordinator Alejandra Hernández, conducts fieldwork and prepares detailed reports on the social challenges faced in Tenerife.

The name "Base 25" refers to Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which states: "Everyone has the right to dignified housing." It's clear that Tenerife's housing crisis is deeply linked to social vulnerability. Base 25 aims to educate people about their housing rights and responsibilities. Common issues in the rental sector include requests for tenants to leave before their contract ends or difficulties in paying rent, which can lead to eviction or forced removal by court order.

The program's main goal is to prevent homelessness and offer housing solutions to vulnerable individuals and families experiencing residential exclusion, supporting them on their journey to social inclusion. It is the only island-wide initiative focused on preventing evictions and housing loss.

Recently, the PSOE party in the Cabildo (Tenerife's island government) proposed increasing Base 25's funding to one million euros. This proposal, aimed at helping more vulnerable families, covering rental aid, and curbing the rise of homelessness, was rejected by the island government's ruling parties, CC and PP.

Cáritas reports that 2,838 people in Tenerife are experiencing extreme residential exclusion, the highest number in five years. The fifth report by the Catholic Church's humanitarian organization, in collaboration with the Cabildo through the IASS, shows a further increase in people without dignified housing in Tenerife. Housing remains a critical factor in understanding poverty and social exclusion.

Hearing directly from those affected is crucial. José, 77, from the south of the island, shared his story last Friday at an event in La Laguna for World Homeless Day: "Before, when I lived in my house, I used to give alms to a boy who sat begging outside the supermarket every day. He always looked at me gratefully just for giving him a couple of coins. I know he died a few years ago, and now life has put me in the same place where he was begging, in his shoes; I am the one being given a couple of coins at the supermarket door."

Juan Rognoni, the provincial director, emphasizes: "A home for a family or an individual starting their independent life is the essential element to be a subject of other fundamental rights."

"I also have dreams" is the title of the national Cáritas campaign and its song. The music was composed and the lyrics adapted by Tenerife native Alejandro Abrante, using words written by homeless people. Their dream is dignified housing, and that is what Base 25 strives to achieve.