CONCEPT NOTE ON SUPPORT FOR STREET CHILDREN IN KABUL

CONCEPT NOTE ON SUPPORT FOR STREET CHILDREN IN KABUL Background Justification The legacy of decades of war in Afghanistan led to a nationwide breakdown of social and economic structures. Poverty is the main determinant of child labour, many families consider not having other choice but to put their children to work. The United Nations Children’s Fund estimates that 31% of 5-14 years old are engaged in child labour and the net enrollement rate of primary school is just above 50% . Street work is one of the most intensive activity sector. Parents consider a valid solution to resort to it temporarily to face unexpected crisis. This sudden poverty can be the result of national, local or family events, including death and illnesses.†¦show more content†¦In Kabul City, more than half of the population is under 19 and besides the lack of birth registration and proper birth certificates, identity cards or school certificates, there is an endemic family poverty. The increasing number of street working children is due also to the change in family struct ure and high number of orphans; only half of school age children are enrolled in school . After the Taliban’s fall in 2001, the Afghan Government has been working with local communities, non-governmental organizations and international community (UNICEF became a leading partner in the reconstruction of the education sector, a relationship that continues today). Together, they have repaired hundreds of school buildings, provided safe water and sanitation facilities to more than 1,000 others, supplied more than 8,500 tents to house temporary classrooms and airlifted thousands of tons of school supplies into the country . Informal education plays a significant role in the education of street working children (14%), this is mainly due to education provided to them by NGOs in Kabul. When asked for reasons behind their lack of attendance at school and lack of education, child workers ranked their top 3 reasons as follows: necessity to work, high cost of school related expenses and their parents decision not to have the child enrol in school . In response to this situation, BDN proposes to give an opportunity to receive the