About 1,000 people sleep on the streets of Singapore every night, mostly older men, according to the country's first study of homeless people.

31% of the respondents, or more than 300, said they had lived in homeless conditions for at least 6 years, according to research published on November 8.

The study was led by Associate Professor Ng Kok Hoe of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, in which 480 volunteers poured out into the street after 23:30 every night to interview homeless wanderers at 12,000 apartment buildings and locations. Public points from April to June.

A quarter of the respondents said they could only eat one meal a day, even fasting. 80% of the respondents are men and 60% are doing low income jobs such as cleaning, protecting.

47% said the main reason for sleeping "dust" is unemployment, poor living hours or low wages. Other reasons include family conflicts or no money to rent a house.

The researchers also found that many homeless people appear to be contrary to social prejudices. They are well groomed, groomed and in some cases homeless.

In July, researchers surveyed the streets again and interviewed an additional 88 homeless people for further results, bringing the number of homeless people interviewed to 1,050.

"Despite community policies and concerns, the size of the homeless in Singapore is currently unknown," Professor Ng said. "Knowing the number of homeless people and where they can be found allows the support services to be designed and organized in a systematic way."

Lee Kim Hua, senior official of Singapore's Department of Social and Family Development, said the agency has strengthened its connection with community groups to reach and support the homeless. The ministry is also building a temporary shelter for "sleeping" people on the street, next to the three existing centers.