The Taichung City Government is to induct homeless people in the city into cleaning crews and employ them in the agricultural sector and as tour guides to help people secure jobs and decrease the number of homeless people in the city.
Taichung Mayor Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said that visiting a homeless shelter last week when the cold front hit the nation helped him realize that most people were on the streets due to financial difficulties and that they wanted to return to the workforce.
Lin said he asked the city government to reintegrate homeless people into the workforce, which, he said, would also help the city maintain the quality of its public spaces.
Social Affairs Bureau statistics show there are 2,533 homeless people in the nation, Taichung City Government Social Affairs Bureau Director Lu Chien-te (呂建德) said, adding that homeless people in Taichung accounted for 9 percent of the total, or 222 people.
Most of them are men between 51 and 60 years old, and live mostly in Taichung’s Central (中區) and East (東區) districts, Lu said.
As the administration of a friendly city, the municipal government should seek to empathize with and help homeless people instead of “eradicating” them, Lu said.
The city is planning to relocate homeless people who are unable to look after themselves to shelters and care facilities, while encouraging those who can still make a life for themselves to work in the city’s cleaning crew, Lu said.
The city is planning to establish “urban farms” so homeless people can grow produce and sell it for a living, Lu said.
In addition, the bureau is training 15 people as tour guides who would help guide visitors around central and east districts, Lu said.
The city is planning to charge NT$300 for a two hour guided tour, Lu said, adding that the fees would provide the tour guides with a monthly income of about NT$20,000.
Homeless people are Taichung residents as well, Lu said, adding that if the city could help homeless people, it would not only allow them to help other people, but might also prevent their personal difficulties from escalating into larger social problems,.
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