Street Children in Nepal
In Nepal the number of street children is increasing in urban areas around Nepal, especially in Kathmandu. Here we currently have more than 1,000 street children who do not have a fixed location. Outside the city of Kathmandu there are over 4,000 homeless children living in other Nepal cities including (but not limited to) Pokhara, Biratnagar, Dharan, Nepalgunj, and Bhairawa. The children living on the streets are 90% male and 10% female. The reason for the increase of street children is due to more urbanization, migration, lack of family support, poverty, increases in unemployment rates, and abandonment. There is no organization that exists to provide shelter or emergency support for children in these circumstances. They spend their days walking the streets, and nights sleeping on the streets, which is dangerous and unsafe.
Due to this it is extremely important to support the deprived street children who are shunned by their family, parents, and society. It is also likely that these children get involved in prostitution for survival just so they can provide enough food for themselves. Due to the tough and unjust street life, these children get involved with tobacco, smoking cigarettes, alcohol, smelling dendrites, and in some cases, injecting drugs with needles. Some children are even found to be affected by HIV due to their lack of education and sanitation within their lifestyle.
The Street Children rely upon tourists as a way to survive. Once the tourist season comes to an end, they are left digging through the dirt and collecting plastic to sell as a way of survival. Due to lack of food, housing and cleaning, these children’s bodies are often covered with bed bugs and lice. They sleep in the streets with dogs and their pups which suffer from various diseases, despite the risk these dogs provide the only warmth in these children’s lives. It is necessary to help rescue these street children by volunteering and helping in the fight for the preservation of children’s rights. We hope to help rescue these children from further abandonment by providing a stable and safe environment where they can flourish and grow through our hostel and also we go to different areas in the street to give them food, cloth and heath check-up etc.
Project ‘Kapan destitute street youth drop in centre”
We are currently working on a grass route project for destitute youth in the local community.
We have plans to build a new shelter, staffed by volunteers in the neighbour hood, where the children/youths can shelter and get food clothes and bedding. This project will require initial funding to get it up and running.
Currently we go to different areas to give out food and clothes, but our heart is to build this new centre for the children. We will then also be able to help those who want to, to get off the street and start a new and different life.
