The Situation of Street Children and the Role of Ngos in Meeting Their Needs: The Case of Addis Ababa
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Date
1998-06
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
In Ethiopia, there are many poor, displaced, unaccompanied, disabled, abused and
neglected, orphaned, and street children. The major cities and towns are particularly
facing frightening problems as urbanization continues unabated resulting in a
rapidly rising population. Such a phenomenon leads to shortage of amenities and
puts the existing urban residents deprived. A realistic symptom of such deprivation
is the alarming number of street children. The majority of these children work on the
streets with some even totally living on the streets without any adult care and
supervision. The study revealed that street children are compelled to work on the streets in their
struggle for survival. By doing menial jobs they both support themselves and their
incomes with the small incomes they earn. Out of the total
interviewees 52 percent are children on the streets who work during the day time
and return home during the night. Children of the street who work and sleep on the
street are about 32 percent while the high risk children are 15 percent The major causes of streetism, according to the study, are poverty, family
disintegration and instability, loss of parents, migration and maltreatment by
parents. The study also confirmed that the magnitude of the problem of street
children is increasing because a number of families could not fulfill the needs of
their children. Although various services are provided by the NGOs to allBviate the
problem, its magnitude is still increasing. Because the magnitude of the problem
and the services which are being rendered by the NGOs could not match.
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Street Children and the Role