Closing the gap between rights and realities for children and youth in urban Brazil: Reflections on a Brazilian project to improve policies for street children

The report tackles the question of the vast gap in Brazil between rights guaranteed in the Constitution and spelt out in law and policy plans and the actual situation of especially low-income children.  It examines a particular vehicle established by federal law to monitor public policy towards children, Children’s Rights Councils, which exist at the municipal, state and federal levels of government.  In particular, the report examines attempts in municipalities in seven different states but most notably Rio de Janeiro to adopt policies to improve the conditions of street children.  The report also summarizes the demography of vulnerable children in Brazil, the condition of street children and the structure of constitutional and legal rights for children.  Attempts to adopt policies for street children were successful in three states, including Rio de Janeiro, but the process was difficult and the municipalities are struggling with strategies to implement the policies.  The report concludes with a brief analysis of other strategies, tools and institutional actors that could assist narrowing the gap between the rights and realities of low-income children in urban Brazil.  

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