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

A publication by The International Center on Research and Policy on Children at the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (CIESPI/PUC-Rio), entitled “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 enforced by the adoption of laws and policies, and the actual situation of urban low-income children. It examines the role of Children’s Rights Councils, which exist at the municipal, state and federal levels of government, and are responsible for the implementation of the Statute at the policymaking and judicial levels. During the research period, attempts to adopt policies for street children were successful in the cities of Rio deJaneiro, São Luís and Recife.