Caritas Denounces Increase in 'Administrative Exclusion' in Alicante After Assisting 5,600 Irregular Immigrants in 2024

Cáritas Diocesana de Orihuela-Alicante presented its 2024 activity report this Thursday. During the year, 15,721 people were directly assisted, reaching nearly 28,000 beneficiaries through various projects, thanks to the efforts of 137 parish Caritas organisations within the diocese.

The organisation has highlighted a 'fractured' society and the administrative exclusion faced by foreigners. According to the report, over 66.74% of those assisted by Caritas are non-EU foreigners, with up to 54%, approximately 5,665 individuals, being irregular immigrants.

The parish organisation explains that this is 'one of the most invisible and painful forms of exclusion' and highlights the plight of these individuals who 'cannot legally access employment or stable housing, living trapped in a legal and social limbo that hinders their development and subjects them to a life without full rights.'

The organisation also emphasises that 66% of those assisted were women, 'highlighting the feminisation of poverty and the burden many women bear as caregivers, household sustainers, or victims of structural violence,' the diocese details. Additionally, age groups include families with minors, young people seeking job opportunities, and the elderly facing abandonment or precariousness.

Caritas also focuses on housing access, describing it as 'one of the greatest social challenges in the province of Alicante and a primary cause of exclusion.' They warn that 'it no longer only affects the homeless or those with extremely low incomes, but also families with precarious employment, migrants, single women with dependents, and young people unable to become independent.'

The diocese stresses the 'high cost of rent and the lack of affordable housing options, which are excluding thousands of people from the system.' With rents exceeding 35% of family income, Caritas warns that more families are now having to allocate 80%. 'This economic burden leaves many without the means to cover other basic needs such as food, health, or education,' they alert.

They also warn of the shared housing issue, which has become 'the only option for many migrants or those in irregular situations, which is saturated and presents precarious living conditions, with exorbitant prices and a high concentration of people per dwelling.'

Caritas insists that the right to housing should not depend on income level and calls for a clear commitment to public policies that ensure access to a decent home for all, especially for those in the most vulnerable situations.

The report also addresses homelessness. Caritas assisted 772 homeless individuals in 2024. This includes not only those living on the streets or in emergency shelters but also those residing in substandard housing, rented rooms without minimum conditions, or facing severe housing insecurity. This reality particularly affects men (81.09%), but also a significant percentage of women (18.91%), many of whom are victims of violence or abandonment, with increasingly deteriorated physical and emotional profiles.

The commitment of volunteers is the foundation and soul of Caritas' model. In 2024, 1,268 volunteers supported the social action of the institution throughout the diocese of Orihuela-Alicante, with a strong presence in 137 parishes. Of these, 1,093 collaborated from Parish Caritas and 175 in specialised projects.