metadata: authors: 0: author: Verner, Dorte; Alda, Erik
count: Brazil
docna: 0: docna: Youth at risk, social exclusion, and
            intergenerational poverty dynamics : A new survey instrument
            with application to Brazil
docty: Policy Research Working Paper
subtopic: Health Care Services Industry,Educational Sciences,Employment and Unemployment,Inequality,Crime and Society
teratopic: Gender
abstracts: cdata!: This paper addresses the underlying
            causes of problems and risks faced by poor and excluded
            youth of 10-24 years of age. The authors develop a survey
            instrument that addresses poverty in a broad sense,
            including hunger, early pregnancy and fatherhood, violence,
            crime, drug use, low levels of social capital, and low
            educational attainment. The authors also shed light on
            intergenerational transfer of risks that are considered to
            induce poverty. They document findings based on the survey
            data gathered in three poor urban neighborhoods in Fortaleza
            in Northeast Brazil. Their main findings show that: (i) Poor
            youth are at considerable risk of growing up without their
            father. Only 7 percent grow up with their father present in
            the household. (ii) The intergenerational transmission of
            low education attainment is at play, but it is diminishing.
            (iii) The risk of early pregnancy and fatherhood is large
            among poor and excluded youth-31 percent of the youth had
            their first child before age 16, triple that of the adult
            population. (iv) The risk of sexual abuse and violence
            within the household exists-6 percent of the youth answered
            that they had their first sexual relationship with a family
            member, and 13 percent grow up in households with violence.
            (v) The social capital levels are low-only 5 percent of the
            youth and 9 percent of the adults have measurable social
            capital. (vi) The risk of growing up in a violent
            neighborhood is large-59 percent of the youth claim that
            they live in a violent neighborhood, 80 percent feel unsafe
            in their neighborhood, and 50 percent feel unsafe at home.
geo_reg_key: 119228,517191
repnme: repnme: Youth at risk, social exclusion, and
            intergenerational poverty dynamics : A new survey instrument
            with application to Brazil
display_title: Youth at risk, social exclusion, and
            intergenerational poverty dynamics : A new survey instrument
            with application to Brazil
listing_relative_url: /research/2004/05/4241410/youth-risk-social-exclusion-intergenerational-poverty-dynamics-new-survey-instrument-application-brazil
topicv3: Poverty m1326687 695,Education m1327048 470,Crime m1439217 3041,Unemployment m1504051 2747,Health m1504661 3480
publishtoextweb_dt: 2010-07-01T00:00:00Z
historic_topic: Gender
no_of_pages: 46
model_extractions: WPS 3296

# **Youth At Risk, Social Exclusion, and Intergenerational Poverty Dynamics: A New Survey Instrument with Application to Brazil**

## by

# **Dorte Verner**<sup>**1**</sup> **and Erik Alda**

## **Abstract**

This paper addresses the underlying causes of problems and risks faced by poor and excluded people, focusing on youth of 10-24 years of age. We develop a survey instrument that addresses poverty in broad sense including hunger, early pregnancy and fatherhood, violence, crime, drug use, low levels of social capital, and low educational attainment. The paper also sheds light on intergenerational transfer of risks that are considered to induce poverty, e.g. in early pregnancy and education attainment. We document simple findings based on the survey data gathered in three poor urban neighborhoods in Fortaleza in the Northeast Brazil. Our main findings show that: (i) poor youth are at considerable risk of growing up without their father—only 7 percent grow up with their father present in the household; (ii) the intergenerational transmission of low education attainment is at play, but it is diminishing; (iii) the risk of early pregnancy and fatherhood is large; 31 percent of the youth had their first child before age 16, triple that of the adult population; (iv) the risk of sexual abuse and violence within the household exists— 6 percent of the youth answered that they had their first sexual relationship with a family member and 13 percent grow up in household with violence; (v) the social capital levels are low—only five percent of the youth and 9 percent of the adults have measurable social capital; and (vi) the risk of growing up in a violent neighborhood is large—59 percent of the youth claim that they live in a violent neighborhood, 80 percent feel unsafe in their neighborhood and 50 percent feel unsafe at home.

## World Bank Policy Research Working Paper 3296, May 2004

_The Policy Research Working Paper Series disseminates the findings of work in progress to encourage the exchange of ideas about development issues. An objective of the series is to get the findings out quickly, even if the presentations are less than fully polished. The papers carry the names of the authors and should be cited accordingly. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this paper are entirely those of the authors. They do not necessarily represent the view of the World Bank, its Executive Directors, or the countries they represent. Policy Research Working Papers are available online at http://econ.worldbank.org._

> 1 The authors would like to thank Josbertini Clementino, Egidio Guerra, Virginia Martins, and the members of MH2OCE and IPOC for their invaluable contribution to this project. We would also like to thank the people in the neighborhoods who helped elaborate this survey instrument which helps us to better understand the issues faced by youth and adults in poor urban neighborhoods.
# **1. Introduction**

This paper is an attempt to contribute to the ongoing debate and discussion of the underlying causes of problems and risks faced by poor and excluded people. The paper has three objectives: first, to develop a survey instrument which would allow us to address possible risk factors commonly found among poor and excluded people, including youth; second, to document some of the simple findings based on the application of the survey in three poor urban neighborhoods in Fortaleza in the Northeast Brazil; and finally, to address intergenerational transfer of poverty and risk.

The motivation behind the developed survey is the growing concerns over widespread and deep poverty in broad sense and the limited knowledge of many of its elements, such as hunger, early pregnancy and fatherhood, violence, crime, drug use, low education attainment, low levels of social capital and the intergenerational transfer of each of these risks, and their causes and effects. Poverty is not only a state of existence but also a process with multiple dimensions and complexities. Usually, it is characterized by deprivation, vulnerability (low capacity to cope with risks), and powerlessness (Lipton and Ravallion 1995; Sen 1999). These characteristics impair people’s sense of well-being. Poverty can be chronic and transient, but transient poverty, if acute, can trap succeeding generations. The poor adapt all kinds of strategies to mitigate and cope with poverty. Hence, to understand poverty it is essential to examine the social and economic context.

Two groups of key factors that affect individual behavior relate to the characteristics of the household and those of the area where the home is located. Such characteristics include, for example:

- Living in highly densely populated areas that lack basic infrastructure and social services;

- Being unemployed or underemployed;

- Experiencing high levels of domestic and neighborhood violence;

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- Attaining low levels of education;

- Experiencing high rates of early female pregnancy and male fatherhood;

- Accumulating low levels of social capital.

This paper presents a survey instrument developed to identify factors that influence the wellbeing of young people and adults in poor neighborhoods and aims to increase our knowledgebase on youth-at-risk, inter-generational transfer of risk, and social inclusion or the lack hereof. For this purpose, the survey is divided in five main areas: i) socio-economic background; ii) education; iii) health and sexuality; iv) social capital and violence; and v) employment and economic activity. Although some sections of the questionnaire can be considered sensitive issues, it is imperative to note that they may have a large impact on the youth and other population groups’ livelihood in poor urban areas. Moreover, in order to define policies to tackle the youth-at-risk problem, social inclusion, and other social problems, sensitive issues need to be addressed. Furthermore, by interviewing both youth and adults, data allow us to evaluate the possibility of intergenerational transfers of poverty and risk.

The paper is organized in four sections, including this introduction. Section two presents the survey instrument’s contents and methodology for its application. Section three gives simple tabulations of the survey data collected in poor neighborhoods in the Northeast Brazil and highlights information that is useful as background and for further data analyses. Section four presents the main conclusions and recommendations. Finally, Appendix A presents the questionnaire in both English and Portuguese language.

# **2. Survey Instrument and Implementation Process**

This sub-section is organized in two sections and addresses the development of the survey instrument and the implementation process.

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# **2.1 Survey Instrument**

The limited knowledge of youth and the risks faced by this group led us to focus on the 10-24 year olds. The definition of youth varies from country to country, city to city, and maybe even from neighborhood to neighborhood. The United Nations (UN) defines youth as the group of 1524 year olds.<sup>2</sup> We used the UN’s 24 years of age as the upper limit. In Brazil, the official age of entering into the labor force is 10 years of age. Therefore, 10 years of age is set as the lower limit within this group. Moreover, many issues that influence the well being of youth may begin at this age. In Brazil, as elsewhere, the age group of 10-24 year olds is far from a homogeneous group.

The survey instrument was developed with the idea of obtaining information about the livelihood in the very poorest urban neighborhoods and subsequently to analyze issues related to youth-atrisk, social exclusion and risk of intergenerational transmission of poverty. The developed survey instrument contains a total of 61 questions, covering five major areas: i) socio-economic background; ii) education; iii) health and sexuality; iv) social capital and violence; and v) employment and economic activity. The questions were initially drawn and developed from three sources: two available surveys and personal experience in poor urban neighborhoods in Brazil, and then modified throughout the pilot experience. The majority of the questions are developed from qualitative work in poor urban neighborhoods in the Northeast Brazil. The general information questions are based on the Brazilian Living Standards Measurement Survey (LSMS).<sup>3</sup> The questions on social capital are based on a survey instrument developed by Martin Paldam<sup>4</sup> . In addition to the questionnaire, direct dialogue was established with youth, other neighborhood members, and NGOs in the poor neighborhoods, which allowed us to learn about issues that are important in the dwellers’ lives.

The socio-economic section of the survey includes questions about the respondent, the family, the home and people in the household, whether parents of the respondent are alive, and whether they are living in the household. The section on education includes questions on the level of

> 2 Source: http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/unyin/forum/ 3 See http://www.worldbank.org/lsms/ 4

> See for example: http://www.econ.au.dk/Vip_htm/mpaldam/homepage.htm

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education of the respondent and his/her parents. We also address non-school related topics such extracurricular activities (mainly cultural activities and sports),<sup>5</sup> and whether he/she receives government provided social assistance. Section three of the survey deals with the questions on health and sexuality issues. We ask the respondent on whether he/she has ever, or in the last year, experienced hunger, and if affirmative, how he/she copes with hunger. In addition, we ask about the ideal age for initiation of sexual activities, actual first sexual relationship, with whom he/she had the first sexual experience. Furthermore, we ask about the age of the respondent when his/her first child was born alive. The section on social capital and violence includes questions on drugs use, frequency of use, and ways and means to obtain drugs. We also ask about trust in local, municipal, and other organizations in the neighborhood, trust in other dwellers, and own level of organization. The final section, which covers the areas of employment and economic activity, includes questions on current employment status, income, sector employment, and means of transportation to and from work.

As mentioned above, some issues addressed may be considered to be sensitive in the local context, accordingly, the phrasing and language used in the questionnaire were carefully chosen to mitigate any complexity the sensitivity might cause. In addition, the survey team worked together with psychologists with experiences with youth from low-income areas who helped design some of the potentially sensitive questions

# **2.2 Implementation of the Survey Instrument**

Key issues in the implementation of the survey are tackled through the formation of the team, sampling, and organization of the fieldwork. Each of these areas is described in the following three sub-sections.

> 5 Physical activity among youth offers immediate health benefits such as improving strength and endurance, helping to build stronger bones and muscles, and help reducing anxiety and stress. However, further research is needed to be done to assess whether physical activity has results on preventing or minimizing youth violence and other risk factors for this group.

5
# **Team and organization**

This study was facilitated by two sets of teams. The research team was composed of statisticians from the local university, psychologists, NGOs, Human Rights spokesmen and women, youth and other people living in the selected neighborhoods (see below).

The interview team was composed of one general coordinator and three neighborhood coordinators. The neighborhood coordinators recruited interviewers in each of the neighborhoods. IPOC ( _Instituto de Pesquisa Organizada do Ceará_<sup>6</sup> _-Institute of Organized Research of Ceará_ ), a local NGO operating in the poor neighborhoods, led the interview process. Both the pilot and final interviews were carried out by youth from the neighborhoods (see below).<sup>7</sup> Some of the interviewers were part of the MH2OCE ( _Movimento Hip-Hop Organizado do Ceará- Organized Hip-Hop Movement of Ceará_ ), an organization which has contributed in reducing violence in poor neighbors in Fortaleza. As MH2OCE works with local gangs and their members, this arrangement facilitated the team’s access to the most violent areas of the neighborhoods, and, therefore, could negotiate access to areas under the control of violent groups, especially rival gangs.<sup>8</sup> Before the initiation of the fieldwork, IPOC held classroom training for all survey workers in which the purpose of this work was outlined and basic information about the neighborhoods and dwellers was provided. Having IPOC involved in this preparation stage was important as they speak the “same language” as the people in poor urban neighborhoods, and, therefore helped modify the questions so that they could be more easily understood by the respondents. The training also served to detect areas in which changes needed to be made before piloting the survey.

> 6 IPOC is a neighborhood organization that does surveys and opinion research in the areas where they are present. They use members of the same neighborhood to do their work to ease and have more assurance that the information that they obtain from subjects interviewed is more trustful than if a stranger to the neighborhood was gathering data. 7 To be an interviewer, it was of utmost importance to be able to read and write correctly. All of the researchers had finished primary education, 40 percent had completed secondary education, and the other 60 percent were in the process of finishing secondary school. It took extensive visits to each of the neighborhoods and work with the team of psychologists to find the best matches.

> 8 Without the partnership with IPOC it would have been extremely difficult to get information in some areas as they were extremely violent and the team had to negotiate access to such areas.

6
# **Sampling**

The sampling methodology was developed based on geographical and socio-economic information about the neighborhoods, residences and dwellers. The first step in the sampling process was to select a group of potential neighborhoods. The following criteria were applied for the selection:

- Low and middle HDI<sup>9</sup> (Human Development Indicator, developed by UNDP)

- Average population of 20,000 people

- Geographical location  (North, East and West of Fortaleza)

- Presence of violence reduction groups, such as MH2OCE

The neighborhoods selected were Autran Nunes, Edson Queiroz, and Pirambú. The second step was to select a representative sample of households.<sup>10</sup> For this purpose, detailed maps of the neighborhoods were obtained from the municipal government ( _Secretaria de Infrastrutura da Prefeitura)_ . The final step was to define the sample size to interview and the sequence of interviews. Each neighborhood had around of 4,500 houses and around 500 questionnaires were applied in each of the neighborhoods. As a result, the sample contains about every ninth household in each of the three neighborhoods.

# **Field work**

Prior to the general application of the survey, pilot interviews were conducted in order to test the questionnaire as well as its feasibility, appropriateness of the language, and timing during the day to carry out interviews. The pilot took place on June 16-17, 2003. One of the main findings of the pilot was that applying questionnaires only in the morning, due to safety reasons, would bias the survey results, limiting the profile of the majority of the respondents to be either students or unemployed. To reduce this bias, it was decided to send the team twice a day, in the morning and

> 9 This information was supplied by the Secretariat of Planning of the municipal government of Fortaleza  ( _Secretaria de Planejamento e Orçamento da Prefeitura de Fortaleza)._

> 10 We defined household as  any group of persons, not necessarily related by blood or marriage, occupying the same structure and sharing household resources, such as food and bedding.

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in the evening. In the evening, those who work day shifts would have returned home and also, those who work night shifts would still be home getting ready to go to work. Another problem that the team encountered was that during the weekends, violence levels tended to be higher than during the week. This naturally resulted in reducing, for safety reasons, the number of interviews conducted on the weekends.

The interviews were conducted during June 19-29, 2003 by five interviewers in each of the three neighborhoods. The coordinators divided the neighborhood in quarters based on the available maps, and each interviewer carried out the interviews in the respective quarter throughout the day. Each interviewer completed around 10 questionnaires daily under close supervision of the team coordinators.

# **3. Background Information on Urban Neighborhoods and the Northeast**

The Northeast Brazil is home to around 50 percent of the poor people in Brazil. About 20 million people live below the poverty line (food-only) in the region. Headcount poverty in the Northeast is among the highest in Brazil and its primarily causes include adverse climate conditions (semiarid), low levels of human capital, low levels of economic development and, sometimes, clientelistic oriented governments and lack of good governance.

The survey was implemented in Fortaleza, the capital of the state of Ceará in the Northeast Brazil and the fifth largest city in the country (IBGE 2000). Fortaleza has 2.1 million inhabitants and when the metropolitan area is included its population adds up to 2.8 million.<sup>11</sup> The city is located in the northern part of the state and limits the Atlantic Ocean to the north and east. Fortaleza covers an area of 336 square kilometers and is divided into 6 regions according to the Regional Executive Secretariat ( _Secretaria Executiva Regional_ ) _._ Fortaleza has 402 shantytowns

> 11 Fortaleza’s Metropolitan Region consists of nine municipalities which are: Aquiraz, Caucaia, Euzébio, Fortaleza, Guaiúba, Itaitinga, Maracanaú, Maranguape, and Pacatuba.

8
(favelas),<sup>12</sup> of which 82 were classified as risk areas by the _Polícia Militar_ (Military Police) in 2002.

The state of Ceará has one of the lowest HDI among Brazil’s 27 states. However, it is the state that has improved the most in terms of human development measured by the HDI during 19912000. Ceará’s HDI increased from 0.593 in 1991 to 0.700 in 2000 (see Table 1).

|**Table 1: Human Developm**<br>|**ent Index,**<br>|**1991-2000**<sup>**13**</sup><br>|
|---|---|---|
|**State**|**HDI 1991**|**HDI 2000**|
|Brazil|0.696|0.766|
|Pernambuco|0.620|0.705|
|Rio Grande do Norte|0.604|0.705|
|Ceará|0.593|0.700|
|Bahia|0.590|0.688|
|Sergipe|0.597|0.682|
|Paraíba|0.561|0.661|
|Piauí|0.566|0.656|
|Alagoas|0.548|0.649|
|Maranhão|0.543|0.636|
|Federal District (Brasilia)<br>Source:_Atlas do Desenvolvimento_|0.799<br>_Humano no B_|0.844<br>_rasil_,UNDP.|

During 1991-2000, the municipality of Fortaleza improved its HDI slightly less than the state as a whole; the HDI increased from 0.717 to 0.786 (see Table 2). However, it is important to note that large disparities are observed when disaggregating the HDI by neighborhood.

> 12 Source: IBGE. IBGE defines a _favela_ or abnormal housing agglomeration as at least 51 houses without access to basic services and without land title to the properties or recent documentation.

> 13 See _Atlas do Desenvolvimento Humano Do Brasil_ , 2003 that describes the calculation of the municipal HDI indicator (HDI-M).

9
**Table 2: HDI in Main Capitals of Brazil**

|**City**|**HDI**<br>**1991**|**HDI**<br>**2000**|**Population**|
|---|---|---|---|
|Sao Paulo|0,804|0,841|10,434,252|
|Rio de Janeiro|0,798|0,842|5,857,904|
|Salvador|0,751|0,805|2,443,117|
|Belo Horizonte|0,791|0,839|2,238,526|
|Fortaleza|0,717|0,786|2,141,402|
|Brazil|0,696|0,766|137,953,959 (urban)|

|Source:_Atlas do Desenvolvimento Humano no Brasil_, UNDP.|
|---|

In fact, the most developed neighborhood in Fortaleza has a HDI comparable to that of industrialized countries (0.916), while the least developed neighborhoods have a level of development comparable to that of countries in sub-Saharan Africa (0.338).<sup>14</sup> The three neighborhoods included in the survey— Autran Nunes, Edson Queiroz, and Pirambú— were among the poorest in Fortaleza (see Table 3). The following three sections describe each neighborhood in more detail.

|**Table 3: HDI and P**<br>|**opulation in**<br>|**Autran Nune**|**s, Edson Queiro**<br>**Total P**|**z, and Pirambú**<br>**opulation**|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|**Neighborhood**|**Region**|**HDI**|**Male**|**Female**|
|Autran Nunes|III|0.380|10,418|10,905|
|Edson Queiroz|VI|0.500|9,590|10,701|
|Pirambú|I|0.391|8,844|9,609|

Souce: _Secretaria de Planejamento e Orçamento/ Prefeitura de Fortaleza_ and Census 2000.

# **Pirambú**

Pirambú is located in the northern part of Fortaleza. This shantytown was developed mainly by people migrating from rural areas in Ceará and other northeastern states in search for higher standard of living, employment, and other opportunities. As Pirambú grew bigger and expanded

> 14 Source: _Dados da Defesa Civil do Município_ .

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along the shoreline, the greater Pirambú area has become one of the biggest shantytowns in South America with over 300,000 dwellers. In 2000, Pirambú had a population of 18,453 people. As shown in Table 4, the public services offered to the population by the State and Municipal governments are not enough to cover all the needs of Pirambú’s residents.

# **Autran Nunes**

Autran Nunes is located in the eastern part of Fortaleza. This neighborhood is densely populated in a rather small geographical area. In 2000, Autran Nunes had 21,323 people and is the largest neighborhood in terms of the size of the population amongst the three surveyed neighborhoods. This neighborhood also has the lowest HDI (0.380) and is the least equipped in terms of public infrastructure and services (see Table 4). As in Pirambú, infrastructure and basic living conditions in Autran Nunes are quite precarious.

|**Table 4: Public Services in Autr**<br>|**an Nunes, Edson Queiroz, and Pirambú**<br>|
|---|---|
|**Neighborhood**|**Infrastructure**|
|**Pirambú**|•2 Health Centers<br>•1 Community Center<br>•1 Kindergarten<br>•3 Schools<br>• 1 Citizen Center|
|**Autran Nunes**|•2 Health Centers<br>•6 Kindergartens<br>• 5 Schools|
|**Edson Queiroz**|•1 Center of Professional Initiation<br>•1 Health Center opened to the local community,<br>some services in this center are freely offered by<br>the_Universidade de Fortaleza_(UNIFOR)**_._**<br>•10 Schools|
|**Source:** _Secretaria de Planejamento e Or_|_çamento/ Prefeitura de Fortaleza_|

11
## **Edson Queiroz**

Edson Queiroz is located in the western part of Fortaleza. It is the largest of the three surveyed neighborhoods in geographical terms. In 2000, Edson Queiroz had a population of 20,291 people. This neighborhood has benefited greatly from the urban growth in Fortaleza. It hosts the largest private university in Fortaleza (UNIFOR), a large shopping and commercial area, and some of the state government buildings. This has brought improvements to the area, for example, in terms of child care and health care centers. These improvements, in return, may have attracted people with more skills while given new opportunities to old dwellers and, as a result, contributed to the improved HDI. The HDI in Edson Queiroz (0.500) is the highest of the three surveyed neighborhoods (see Table 3).

In terms of infrastructure, Edson Queiroz is one of the better-equipped neighborhoods in Fortaleza (see Table 4). In recent years, the neighborhood has benefited from investments from both the government and private sector.

# **3. Simple Tabulations of Findings**

This section presents several striking findings based on simple tabulations of data collected in the above-mentioned poor urban neighborhoods in Fortaleza. We cannot use these simple findings to establish correlations or causality. It requires further analyses of data to shed light on determinants of risks and other statistical correlations. The findings are organized in accordance with the five thematic areas of the questionnaire: (1) socio-economic background; (2) education; (3) health and sexuality; (4) violence and social capital; and (5) and employment and economic activity. All the numbers in the below sections refer to the survey data collected in Fortaleza.

# **3.1 Socio-economic background**

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The sample contains 765 youth (between 10 and 24 years of age) and 725 adults (above 24 years of age). The age in the sample is self-reported. The gender distribution of the sample is 53 percent males and 47 percent females. The composition of the race turned out to be: 40 percent white, 45 percent _pardo_ , 10 percent Afro-Brazilian, 1 percent Asian, and 3 percent Indian (selfreported).

Youth in poor urban neighborhoods in Fortaleza are at considerable risk of growing-up without parents and, in particular, growing-up without their father in the household. Only 7 percent of the youth are growing up with their biological father and 57 percent with their biological mother (see Figure 1).

**Figure 1:    Youth and Adults that Have Been Brought Up With Their Parents** **<u>Present in the Household (percent)</u>**

<!-- Start of picture text --> 100<br>90 Youth Adults<br>80<br>70<br>60<br>50<br>40<br>30<br>20<br>10<br>0<br>Live with Father Live with Mother Live with None<br>Source: Data collected by authors in poor urban neighborhoods in the Northeast Brazil.<br><!-- End of picture text --> 13
# **3.2 Risk of low education attainment**

Existing studies have shown that children raised in poor households face a large risk of achieving a low level of educational attainment and dropping out of school. The intergenerational transfer of low levels of education is high in poor households. Parents with little school attainment tend to raise children that also obtain little formal schooling. A large share of the fathers and mothers of the youth have never attended school, 19 and 23 percent, respectively. An even greater share of the parents of the adults did not attend school (48 percent).

The data reveal that 71 percent of the fathers of the youth have not completed primary education compared to 84 percent of fathers of the adults. This compares to 76 percent of the mothers of the youth that have not completed primary education and 88 percent of the mothers of the previous generation. Hence, in poor urban neighborhoods the mothers have acquired slightly more education than the fathers over the past generations.

**<u>Figure 2:   Youth and Adults Education Attainment (percent)</u>**

<!-- Start of picture text --> 60<br>Youth Adults<br>50<br>40<br>30<br>20<br>10<br>0<br>No Schooling Primary Incomplete Primary CompleteSecondary IncompleteSecondary CompleteUniversity IncompleteUniversity Complete<br><!-- End of picture text --> <u>Source: Data collected by authors in poor urban neighborhoods in the Northeast Brazil.</u> 14
In the surveyed neighborhoods in Fortaleza, two percent of the youth never attended school while 63 percent of them currently attend school (see Figure 2). Among the non-school attending youth, 10 percent give financial difficulties as the main reason for not attending school. Although public education is free in Brazil, school materials and clothing can add up to a considerable sum of money for a poor family and, therefore, constrain poor youth’s school attendance. Moreover, although cash-transfer programs that condition school attendance of children are available to poor households, relatively few have benefited in the very poor urban neighborhoods (24 percent). Another important reason for not attending school was the lack of interest; around 19 percent of the youth answered that they do not attend school because they are not interested.

The youth also answered questions on their time allocation to different activities and labor market participation. While not in school, 31 percent of the youth answered that they watch television. Sports are the most popular activity, as 46 percent of the youth population answered that they practice sports.

In many poor countries, one of the main reasons for low school attendance and high dropout rates of the youth relates to the children or youth entering into the labor force. However, our data reveal that this is not the case in the very poor urban neighborhoods in Fortaleza as only 17 percent of the youth participate in the labor market.

# **3.3 Hunger, Sexual Activity and Drug Related Risks**

In poor areas, health related risks are usually abundant and, unfortunately, Fortaleza is not an exception.

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# **Hunger**

The risk of experiencing hunger is large in many areas of Brazil. In the poor urban neighborhoods in Fortaleza, 27 percent of the youth answered that they experienced hunger at least once in their life, while 55 percent of the adults did. Among those youth who experienced hunger, 43 percent did so in the last 12 months (see Figure 3). They cope with the feeling of hunger by sleeping and going out. Examination of general nutrition status, which should involve weighing and measuring, is not within the scope of this study.

**Figure 3: Youth and Adults that Experienced Hunger Once in Their Lives** **<u>or in the Last 12 months (percent)</u>**

<!-- Start of picture text --> 80<br>70<br>Youth Adult<br>60<br>50<br>40<br>30<br>20<br>10<br>0<br>No Hunger (Ever) Hunger (Ever) No Hunger (12) Hunger (12)<br>Source: Data collected by authors in poor urban neighborhoods in the Northeast Brazil.<br><!-- End of picture text -->

# **Sexual Activities**

In poor urban areas, the risk of engaging in sexual activities at an early age is large. Answers reveal that 19 percent of the youth suggest that ideally a sexual relationship should start at age 15 or younger. Only 9 percent of the adult population shares this opinion. Hence, the vast majority 16
suggests that sexual activities should not be initiated in early teenage years. However, the reality demonstrates a very different picture; 61 percent of the youth answered that they had their first sexual relationship before age 16 compared to 29 percent of their parents (see Figure 4), indicating that the intergenerational risk transfer of early sexual engagement is at play and it is increasing across generations.

**Figure 4:  Age of First Sexual Relationship of Youth and Adults,** **<u>(percent)</u>**

<!-- Start of picture text --> 50<br>45<br>Youth Adult<br>40<br>35<br>30<br>25<br>20<br>15<br>10<br>5<br>0<br>age -11 age 12-14 age 15-17 age 18-20 age 21-23<br>Source: Data collected by authors in poor urban neighborhoods in the Northeast Brazil.<br><!-- End of picture text --> The survey reveals that 33 percent of the youth do not use any contraceptives, meaning that they are exposed to considerable risk of contracting HIV/Aids and other sexually transmitted diseases.

The youth are also at considerable risk of early pregnancy and fatherhood. Among the youth under 25 years of age, 31 percent had their first-born child before age 16. This is three times more than that of the adult population, where only 9 percent had their first-born child before age 16 (see Figure 5). Again, the intergenerational transfer of risk is strong.

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The risk of sexual abuse is also high in the poor neighborhoods according to data. Data indicate that 6 percent of the youth had their first sexual relationship with a family member. One poor explanation is because of the precarious housing and high occupancy per room.

<!-- Start of picture text --> Figure 5: Age of Youth and Adults When Their First Child Was Born<br>(percent)<br>50<br>45 Youth Adults<br>40<br>35<br>30<br>25<br>20<br>15<br>10<br>5<br>0<br>Age 10-12 Age 13-15 Age 16-18 Age 19-21 Age 22-24<br><!-- End of picture text --> <!-- Start of picture text --> 50<br>45 Youth Adults<br>40<br>35<br>30<br>25<br>20<br>15<br>10<br>5<br>0<br>Age 10-12 Age 13-15 Age 16-18 Age 19-21 Age 22-24<br>Source: Data collected by authors in poor urban neighborhoods in the Northeast Brazil.<br><!-- End of picture text -->

# **Drug Use**

In many Brazilian shantytowns, drugs are fairly easily accessible. The risk of falling into drug use is therefore large. Data reveal that 34 percent of the youth population are taking or have taken soft or hard drugs. Moreover, 14 percent answered that they take drugs on a daily basis.

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# **3.4 Risk of experiencing violence and accumulating little social capital**

Violence and social capital are often inter-related. Areas with high level of social capital and where strong social networks exist often have a lower level of neighborhood violence than those where social capital is scarce. If violence levels are high, it can cause a significantly negative impact on the stock and accumulation of social capital. Moser and Holland (1997) argue that violence in Latin America and the Caribbean countries has eroded social capital in diverse ways: violence prevents neighborhood members from meeting locally and it prevents individuals (especially women) from going to work and, therefore, inhibiting the evolution of social network. In addition, Baker (2001) finds in urban Uruguay that lack of social networks can make the entry into the formal labor market very difficult: “Most unskilled jobs, both in the formal and informal sector, are filled through informal family and social networks. For those living in marginal neighborhoods, these networks are weak, and do not lead to contacts which can help individuals find employment.” Furthermore, violence increases school dropout rates (especially from night school) and impairs the coverage of health services.

The social capital literature often measures social capital by the level of organization of the neighborhood members. If a neighborhood is well organized and the levels of trust and networking are strong enough, members of the neighborhoods can decide to act collectively and set norms and rules to fight against crime and violence, and, thus, generating stronger social capital. The whole society becomes a single group where the social relationships foster collective action to decrease and prevent violence and crime within the neighborhood.

When measuring the level of social capital by participation in organizations in the three neighborhoods in Fortaleza, the risk of accumulating little social capital measured by membership of one or more organizations is high. Only five percent for the youth and 9 percent of the adult populations are members of one or more organizations, including the church.

The risk of growing-up in a neighborhood with violence is great in poor neighborhoods. Data reveal that 59 percent of the youth claim that they live in a neighborhood with violence or high 19
level of tension that may invite violence. Violent gang activities are prevalent and 73 percent of the youth answered that their neighborhood had experienced gang fights in the last 12 months. Concomitantly, the lack of safety in the neighborhood is clearly expressed by the dwellers in general. Only 15 percent of the youth and 16 percent of the adults feel safe in their neighborhood. Finally, 47 percent of the youth and 55 percent of the adults do not feel safe in their own home.

We also address the issue of why the youth would engage in violent activities. Slightly less than half of the youth population (47 percent) answered that family problems are the main reason for violent activities. Other 23 percent suggest that lacking opportunities are the main reason to engage in violent activities.

The risk of domestic violence is also present in the neighborhoods. Around 13 percent of the youth claim that they grew up in a household with violence and their father or brothers were the principal committers of domestic violence. Thirteen percent may seem low, but given the fact that only 7 percent grew up with their father in the household, this number holds a significant meaning. (see section 3.1).

# **3.5 Risk of Unemployment**

A good job is a well-paid job that, as a bare minimum, lifts the household out of income poverty. Hence, sufficient income to pay for basic needs such as food, shelter, education and health care are key to sustainable poverty reduction at the household level. Unfortunately, the data from the three poor urban neighborhoods in Fortaleza reveal that the dwellers do suffer from lack of employment opportunities.

The youth and adults face substantial risk of being unemployed and underemployed. The data show that 58 percent of the youth population did not work at any point during the last 12 months and almost half of the adult respondents (48 percent) did not work during the last 12 months.

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Moreover, only 11 percent of the youth had their workbook signed by the employer, that is, contributed to pension and other social benefits and received at least a minimum salary in 2003.<sup>15</sup> Unemployment rates are high among the low and unskilled segment of Brazilians. The youth are particularly hampered by the lack of jobs in poor neighborhoods. Even skilled young people have very few job opportunities. In Fortaleza, as elsewhere in Brazil, youth unemployment rate is much higher than adult unemployment. In the poor neighborhoods, 39 percent of the youth declared themselves unemployed compared to 28 percent of the adult population. Moreover, in many households, not a single adult has a job. Hence, there is no income arriving on a regular basis to sustain the household.

Given that very few young people have a decent level of formal education, on-the-job or other forms of training may enhance their opportunities. Data reveal that only 38 percent of the youth have obtained some kind of training, although 87 percent indicate that training would enhance their opportunities obtaining a job.

Finally, anecdotal evidence indicates that the more skilled youth group, for example the group that has completed secondary education, does not search for work and look for opportunities outside their neighborhood and nearby area because they lack money for transportation. Some of the young dwellers mentioned that a simple bus ticket could solve some of the youth unemployment problems they face.

# **4. Conclusion**

In low-income areas in Brazil, similar to the rest of the developing countries, youth from poor households face a considerable number of risks that their peers from middle class or rich households do to a far less extent. This paper presents a survey instrument that sheds light on some of the risk factors that poor youth face and the intergenerational transfer of these risks, e.g.

> 15 In 2003, one minimum salary was R$240.00 in Fortaleza (Source: Diario O Povo).

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early pregnancy, low education attainment, and drug use. The key findings based on our survey data collected in Fortaleza, the Northeast of Brazil are the following.

- Poor youth are at considerable risk of growing up without their father; only 7 percent grow up with their father present in the household.

- The intergenerational transmission of low education attainment is at play, but it is diminishing; two percent of the youth never attended school, compared to 19 and 23 percent of their mothers and fathers, respectively.

- Poor people are at considerable risk of hunger and malnourishment; 27 percent of the youth and 55 percent of the adults experienced hunger at least once in their life and 43 percent of the youth did so in the last 12 months.

- Risk of early pregnancy and fatherhood is large; 31 percent of the youth had their first child before age 16. This is triple that of the adult population, where only 9 percent entered into parenthood before age 16.

- Risk of sexual abuse and violence within the household exists; six percent of the youth answered that they had their first sexual relationship with a family member and 13 percent grow up in household with violence.

- The youth are at risk of falling into drug use; 34 percent of the youth population are taking or did take drugs and 14 percent use drugs on a daily basis

- Social capital levels are low; only 5 percent of the youth and 9 percent of the adults have measurable social capital. Moreover, 35 percent have no confidence in the other dwellers of the neighborhood.

- Risk of growing up in a violent neighborhood is large; 59 percent of the youth claim that they live in a violent neighborhood, 80 percent feel unsafe in their neighborhood and 50 percent feel unsafe at home.

- The risk of engaging into violence is considerable and 47 percent of the youth claim that family problems are the main reason for youth engaging in violent activities, while 23 percent suggest that lacking opportunities in general is the main reason.

- Risk of unemployment and is huge; 39 percent of the youth declared themselves unemployed compared to 28 percent of the adult population.

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Finally, our research clearly shows that youth are not the problem but a product of their environment. They react mostly rationally to the situation as also found by Correia and Cunningham (2003) in the Caribbean. In Brazil as elsewhere, many risk factors such as crime and violence generate huge losses in benefits to individuals and society as a whole.

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