Healthcare In 2009, the municipality had 63 healthcare facilities, including
hospitals,
emergency services,
health centers, and
dental services, with 32 public and 31 private facilities. These provided 165
beds for hospitalization, with 123 in public facilities and 42 in private ones, the latter also serving the
Unified Health System (SUS). In 2012, 68.8% of births in the municipality were
C-sections, and 1% of children were born without
prenatal exams. There was one maternal death among 1,748 births, representing a rate of 57.2 deaths per 100,000 births, and 20.5% of children were born to teenage mothers (under 20 years old). In 2013, 96.1% of children under one year old had up-to-date vaccination records. In 2012, 21 cases of
AIDS were reported, with nine in men and twelve in women. In 2011, there were 648 cases of
dengue, two of
malaria, and one of
leishmaniasis. According to the
Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), in 2012, there were 512 deaths in São Mateus hospitals, with 384 men and 242 women. The most frequent causes included 167 deaths from
respiratory diseases, 124 from
circulatory diseases, 72 from
digestive diseases, and 58 from external causes such as accidents, injuries, and poisonings. The city has a public municipal pharmacy providing free medications. Additionally, the municipality conducts vaccination campaigns against
influenza in May and against
rabies in the same month.
Education In 2013, the average Basic Education Development Index (IDEB) for São Mateus public schools was 5.4 for early years and 4.3 for final years. The municipality ranked among Brazil's municipalities for early years and for final years. Among Espírito Santo's 78 municipalities, São Mateus ranked 36th for early years and 30th for final years. The
Human Development Index (HDI) for education was 0.655 in 2010, compared to Brazil's 0.849, up from 0.251 in 1991. and two federal higher education institutions: the North Espírito Santo University Center (CEUNES), part of the
Federal University of Espírito Santo (UFES) and a campus of the Espírito Santo Federal Institute (IFES). In 2012, the homicide rate was 68.9 per 100,000 inhabitants, making it the sixth most violent municipality in Espírito Santo and the 93rd in Brazil. Considering citizens identifying as Black or White, the homicide rate was 93.3 per 100,000 for those identifying as Black and 9.5 for those identifying as White. The suicide rate was 3.6 per 100,000 inhabitants, ranking 21st in the state and 1008th nationally. The traffic accident mortality rate was 63.5 per 100,000 inhabitants, the second highest in the state and 54th nationally. The municipality has two prison facilities. The São Mateus Provisional Detention Center, opened in 2009, has spaces for temporary detainees or those awaiting trial. The São Mateus Regional Penitentiary, managed privately, is recognized as a model for prison management. Opened in 2011, it houses 534 inmates, including 76 women. In 2011, a Municipal Civil Guard, named Citizen Guard, was established to protect and defend municipal public property and its users. São Mateus is home to the 13th Battalion of the
Military Police of Espírito Santo State. Established on June 22, 2010, from the Fifth Independent Company, it covers São Mateus,
Conceição da Barra,
Jaguaré, and
Pedro Canário. As of January 2015, Lieutenant Alex Voney de Almeida was its commander. The city is also home to the Eighteenth Regional Police Station of the Civil Police and a
Federal Police station.
Housing, services, and communications of Escelsa In 2010, according to
IBGE, São Mateus had permanent private households, with in urban areas and in rural areas. Of these, were built with coated masonry, with uncoated masonry, 167 with reused wood, 97 with prepared wood, 66 with coated stucco, 26 with uncoated stucco, 11 with straw, and 52 with other materials. In 2010, of the households, were houses, were apartments, 73 were rooms or tenements, and 50 were houses in villages or condominiums. Regarding occupancy, households were owned, were rented, were loaned, and 52 were in other conditions. For water supply, households had access to the general network, used wells, springs, or cisterns, 223 relied on water trucks, 165 used rainwater stored in cisterns, 24 used rivers, lakes, streams, or creeks, and 124 had other sources. For waste disposal, households had garbage collected, burned their waste, 221 dumped it on vacant lots, 87 buried it, two disposed of it in rivers or the sea, and 42 used other methods. Finally, households had electricity, while 129 did not. The Autonomous Water and Sewage Service (SAAE) is responsible for water supply and sewage treatment. Currently, SAAE serves 80% of households with treated water. Espírito Santo Centrais Elétricas S.A. (Escelsa), a subsidiary of
EDP Brasil, supplies electricity to São Mateus, serving 67 of Espírito Santo’s 78 municipalities.
Internet services, including dial-up and
broadband (
ADSL), are offered by various free and paid
providers. Mobile phone services are provided by
Claro,
Oi,
Tim, and
Vivo. The area code (
DDD) for São Mateus is 027, and the
postal code (
CEP) ranges from 29930-210 to 29949-990. In January 2015, São Mateus had two newspapers: Tribuna do Cricaré and Folha Acadêmica. It also had five radio stations, including Rádio Cricaré at 1120
AM and four
FM stations: Rádio Ilha 87.9 FM, Rádio Kairós 94.7 FM, Rádio Musical 105.1 FM, and Rádio SIM 105.9 FM. Plans exist to extend its runway from m to m and replace its nighttime lighting, which is currently activated only on request. ;Road São Mateus has a well-developed road network connecting it to various cities within the state and major metropolitan areas of the
Southeast Region. The first highway was opened between 1937 and 1938, linking São Mateus to the then-village of
Linhares. According to the Espírito Santo Department of Highways (DER-ES), the municipality is crossed by three
federal highways:
BR-101, which runs along Brazil’s entire coastline and is
privatized in Espírito Santo;
BR-381, starting in São Mateus and connecting to
Minas Gerais and
São Paulo; and
BR-342, linking Espírito Santo to
Bahia. Ten state highways pass through the area, and six of them have been paved. One is still under construction, another is being expanded, and the remaining routes are in natural condition. São Mateus lacks a public
bus terminal, but has two private terminals: one owned by Viação Águia Branca, serving itself and
Viação Itapemirim, and another owned by Viação São Gabriel, serving itself, Viação Gontijo, Viação São Geraldo, and Viação Nacional. ;Urban The Municipal Secretariat of Works, Infrastructure, and Transportation oversees traffic control and maintenance, including road inspections, driver and pedestrian behavior, traffic engineering projects, paving, road construction, and management of services such as taxis, alternative transport, buses, charters, and school transport. Public passenger transport has been operated by Viação São Gabriel Ltda. since 1975. The city also offers taxi and motorcycle-taxi services. In 2013, according to IBGE, the city had a fleet of vehicles, including cars, motorcycles, pickup trucks, scooters, trucks, 659 vans, 371 buses, 164 tractor-trailers, 148 utility vehicles, 117 tractors, and other vehicle types.
Railway From 1923 to 1941, São Mateus was served by the São Mateus Railway, which connected it to
Nova Venécia, then a settlement under São Mateus’s jurisdiction. The railway had a 60 cm gauge and facilitated the transport of timber and coffee from the region to the city’s former river port, as well as local passenger services. It spanned 68 km of track without connecting to other railways. Its operation was short-lived, ceasing in 1941 when it was dismantled, and its rails and materials were sold by the State Government. The proceeds funded the construction of a water tank in the city, now located near the Municipal Historical Museum. Few traces of the old railway remain in São Mateus, except for its former headquarters building, repurposed for other uses. The railway’s former trackbed was replaced by the Miguel Curry Carneiro Highway (ES-381), now part of BR-381, with this section owned by the State Government, explaining the name change. == Culture ==