The Problem
No child should be left on the streets.
Poverty, disease, abuse and other social issues drive hundreds of thousands of children on to the streets of Kenyan cities. There they face physical and sexual abuse, drugs and violence in a daily fight for survival.
Goals
To provide safe shelter with food, healthcare, psycho-social support and an education for the street children of Kisumu. To facilitate rehabilitation and reintegration for children living on the streets back to their families and/or wider communities.
The Latest
Simon Jersey give our girls at HOVIC something to dig their needles into
Posted on 14th May 2015
When Steve Sharp visited HOVIC on our Making Tracks cycle ride, he found the young women there learning to sew using paper.
Many of these young teenagers have been forced to leave home for the streets, or resort to prostitution to feed themselves. Some, little older than children themselves, now have babies of their own. But since KOP funded a collection of sewing machines for the shelter, they have been learning tailoring skills to support themselves.
Steve saw the young women sewing their paper and decided to send them some fabric and equipment from the team at Simon Jersey! The girls were overjoyed at this and have been making some gorgeous clothes for other children at the shelter. Marti, KOP’s international programme manager, went to see them recently and has returned with these photographs to share with all the amazing supporters who made this possible. Thank you everyone, Simon Jersey and the Making Tracks cyclists in particular, for helping these young women get back on their feet.
Want to help us change more lives at HOVIC? Donate.
Evidence
The first step is shelter
Hope for Victoria's Children have built up experience of supporting street children in Kisumu since 2003. They have learnt that by providing immediate shelter, food and psycho-social support, over time they can rehabilitate many children back into their communities.
Evidence based on:
Further reading
Where we work
We currently work in the Hope for Victoria's Children (HOVIC) centre in Kisumu in Western Kenya.
Methodology
Child.org funds a weekend feeding programme for ‘street children’ in the HOVIC day centre, a NGO based in Kisumu. This project ensures that these orphaned and vulnerable children (OVC’s) receive nutritious meals, educational development, psycho-social support, advice and medical care from staff at the centre.
Child.org also provides educational funding support for a number of street children through their primary education, additional support for those within HOVIC in secondary education and also a small number undertaking vocational training.
In 2008 Child.org (then KOP) funded the purchase of a property in Kisumu to be a HOVIC ‘night shelter’; a ‘halfway house’ resource for the most vulnerable children living on the streets of Kisumu. This facility provides an opportunity for children who are particularly vulnerable or are approaching a time in their development with HOVIC to leave the danger of the streets and be integrated back into their communities, it also provides a safe space for girls to receive vocational training during the day.
How you can help
A monthly donation is the best way to help us fund our Street Children’s Centres. We won’t tell you that your monthly donation of £100 saves 100 children. It’s not as simple as that. Read why we need Child.org core and join now.
If you want to help us support the children that need most help getting an opportunity, take a look at our Do something page and take your first step.