salaamstreetkids.org                     Who are Street Children ?

According to the UNITED NATIONS, “Street children are those for whom the street (in the widest sense of the word, i.e. unoccupied dwellings, wasteland, etc.) more than their family has become their real home, a situation in which there is no protection, supervision, or direction from responsible adults.”

We consider 2 operational categories:

1. Children of families on the Street:

Forming the largest category, these are children who live with their families on the street. They consider their home a plastic tarpaulin or a disused water pipe; a broken down bus shelter or simply a place where they store a bundle of clothes; the family collects together at the end of the day and usually share a night meal.

2. Children alone on the Street:

These children are a group who have chosen the street as their home and it is there that they seek shelter, livelihood, and companionship. These children have severed all ties with their families. They are entirely on their own, not only for material survival but also psychologically.