Homelessness in Netherlands more than doubled since 2009

The number of homeless 18- to 65-year-olds in the Netherlands more than doubled from 17,800 in 2009 to 39,300 last year. The number of homeless people between the ages of 18 and 30 years tripled duirng this period, as has the number of homeless people with a non-Western migration background, Statistics Netherlands reported on Friday.

The estimated number of homeless adults in the Netherlands increased by almost 10 thousand from 2009 to 27,300 in 2012. In the years that follow, the rising trend seemed to end. But between 2014 nd 2018, the number increased again by more than 12 thousand.

As in previous years, the majority of homeless people in the Netherlands are men - 84 percent. Over 37 percent of homeless people stayed in one of the four large cities - Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Utrecht or The Hague. Of all homeless adults, 57 percent had a migration background.

Last year nearly a third of the homeless were between the ages of 18 and 30. At 12,600 homeless in this age group, the number tripled since 2009. About half were in the age group 30 to 50. While the percentage of homeless people in this age group decreased from 57 to 49 percent between 2009 and 2018, they still form the largest group of homeless people in the Netherland.

The number of homeless people with a non-Western migration background almost tripled since 2009, from 6,500 to 18,300. Almost half of the homeless adults in the Netherlands have a non-Western migration background, compared to 36 percent in 2009. The number of homeless people with a Western migration background more than doubled during this period, the number of homeless with a Dutch background almost doubled.

Earlier this week Statistics Netherlands reported that the number of people in the Netherlands who need help from food banks increased by 8 percent in the first half of this year, compared to the same period last year.