Rebuilding young lives for a better future
Because of COVID-19, children and young people living and working on the streets have faced even bigger challenges. Today on the International Day for Street Children, I want to take a moment to reflect on the experiences of homeless children across the world during the past year and how, with your support, we and our […]
Schools closed in Rwanda immediately after confirming the first case of COVID-19 and they stayed shut for ten months. But from 18th January, we were finally able to reopen schools to all children. Before COVID-19, we were supporting children and their families in Rwanda with inclusive services. We work to increase access to education for […]
The pandemic is having a long-term impact on the most vulnerable children and families across the countries we work in. While wealthy countries are undertaking national vaccine rollouts, and developing plans to return to normal life, the future is less certain elsewhere – and especially for the most vulnerable children. There will be no ‘return […]
Liz Mnengwah, Head of Programmes for our partner Glad’s House Kenya, talked to us about the struggles young mothers face living on the streets of Mombasa. For a girl to be living on the streets of Mombasa for three years and not become pregnant is a miracle. We meet many young women on the streets, […]
“We are battling two wars. Hunger and Coronavirus.” One boy on the streets of Mombasa told our partner, Glad’s House Kenya. He’s one of an estimated 3,000 children living or working on the streets in the city. Many of them have experienced significant trauma due to experiences at home, and the pandemic has made their […]
As a child living on the streets of Mombasa, just the ‘crime’ of having nowhere to call home could see you locked up in prison. Thanks to the work of our partner, Glad’s House Kenya, this practice is finally decreasing. But street-connected children, who are extremely vulnerable and at risk, are still too often criminalised. […]
Years of conflicts in Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo have thrown the country into chaos. It’s led to poverty, denial of justice and lack of access to medical and psychological rehabilitation for young people. Inability to access education has further exacerbated this and there are high rates of illiteracy. In Eastern DRC, almost 40% of […]
Across sub-Saharan Africa, children face all sorts of barriers to getting an education. But how much do you know about the struggles children face just to attend school? Take our five-question quiz to find out!
In August last year, 122 new young people joined vocational training at the Patongo Youth Centre we support in Uganda! In Patongo, Northern Uganda, poverty is endemic. Young people have little to no means of improving their prospects. 86% of those in rural areas rely on subsistence farming, but this has been disrupted by decades […]
For thousands of children in Mombasa, Kenya, the streets and dumpsites are where they live their lives: hustling, sleeping, working, and eating. These children and young people are often criminalised by those who should be offering them care and protection, by police who routinely round them up and detain them. With a lack of trusted […]
We counted 12 days of impact from 20th-31st December across our social media accounts! These are twelve ways you’ve helped to have an impact this year, selected by our Programmes team who have worked hard to turn your donations into support for the most marginalised children.
In Rwanda, schools had to close because of the pandemic. The school for deaf children we support with our partner EmCD was shut for months, leading to children being stuck at home and falling behind on their education. Although teachers regularly reached out to children over the phone, the support they can give remotely doesn’t […]
Thanks to our incredible supporters, we’ve hit our £40,000 target! This means that donations are no longer doubled. But you can still donate to our campaign to help the most vulnerable children! Every donation truly makes a difference and any more we raise will go towards supporting more children through this crisis and beyond. Our […]
In April, DR Congo launched the country’s first radio-based learning programme, to ensure children were able to access education throughout the lockdown. We supported our partner, Children’s Voice, to provide additional radio lessons to over 6,500 students. However home schooling over radio is no substitute for in-person interaction between the child and the teacher, and […]
No-one could have predicted what has unfolded in 2020. The world has been gripped with fear as cases and death rates soared; and now not for the first time as sadly many countries gear up again for a second spike. The impact on life and work has been manageable for some, but devastating for many. […]
