The Number of Homeless Women in Tehran is Increasing Exponentially

During a visit on Friday, January 23, Shahindokht Molaverdi, the Vice President of Iran, announced that there are 500 homeless women in Tehran, and this number is increasing "exponentially." According to the Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA), Akbar Rajabi, the CEO of the charity organization 'Tolu-e Bi-Neshanha,' stated during this visit that four years ago, the number of homeless women in Tehran was 200, but it has now reached 500 and continues to grow exponentially. Previously, Rahmatollah Hafezi, the head of the Health and Environment Commission of the Tehran City Council, had announced that there are more than 3,000 homeless women wandering in the Iranian capital. Mr. Hafezi also reported on the preparations for establishing the first women's shelter in Tehran and called for cooperation from parliament representatives to resolve legal issues. Reza Jahangiri, the Deputy of Social Services of the Tehran Municipality's Welfare and Social Participation Organization, had also reported in November 2013 that the average age of homeless women in the city had decreased to 17 and 18 years. The website 'Alf' at that time wrote that "addiction and its increasing prevalence among women" are significant factors contributing to the phenomenon of female homelessness. According to ISNA, Shahindokht Molaverdi, the Vice President for Women and Family Affairs, also stated that "82% of female heads of households are unemployed." Ms. Molaverdi identified "age composition, education, income and economic poverty, meeting the basic needs of family members by the head of the household, the existence of gender discrimination, and inequality in various social and economic fields" as the reasons for the vulnerability of a significant portion of female heads of households in Iran.