Download - Street Survey 2010
-
8/4/2019 Street Survey 2010
1/17
CHILD RESTORATI0N OUTREACH-LIRA
BASELINE SURVEY RESEARCH REPORT ON STREETCHILDREN IN LIRA MUNICIPALITY, LIRA DISTRICT.
January 2010
CONDUCTED AND PRESENTED BY:
GOODWILL CONSULTANCY,
P.O BOX 610, LIRA.
E-MAIL: [email protected]
Tel: 0782338286/ 0782627005
AN ABRIDGED SURVEY RESEARCH REPORT ON THE STATUS OF STREET
CHILDREN IN LIRA MUNICIPALITY, LIRA TOWN TO ENABLE CHILD
RESTORATION OUTREACH IMPROVE THE LIVES OF STREET CHILDREN.
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected] -
8/4/2019 Street Survey 2010
2/17
INTRODUCTION
This study was conducted at the request of child Restoration Outreach lira. Since the
former is the only civil society organization with a vision of a society where former street
children are living a life as originally intended by God it means that all street children
living in lira municipality, lira District should have gone through a rough life. Due to
limited information and resources on street children initiatives, it is assumed that street
children thrive a fair life.
STATEMENTOFTHEPROBLEM
Child Restoration Outreach-Lira has been at the fore front in initiating and implementingpolicies aimed at minimizing the negative impact of street children in Lira Municipality,
Lira district. However the extent to which their services can be comprehensively
delivered to benefit street children had not been firmly established. This warranted an
investigation into the lives of street children in Lira municipality where their outreach
program targets. With an increasing number of street children in urban areas with orphans
devoid of a structured and supervised environment, where most children thrive, Child
Restoration Outreach Lira therefore requested that the study be carried out.
PURPOSEOFTHESTUDY
The research aimed at finding out the situation of street children and if their needs can be
used to provide services which enhance their living standard as originally intended by
God.
OBJECTIVESOFTHESTUDY
The objectives of the study were:
1. To examine the age and gender of a street child and the importance of identifying
street girls in lira municipality, lira district.
2. To identify the causes of street children in Lira Municipality, Lira District
-
8/4/2019 Street Survey 2010
3/17
3. To examine the needs of street children in Lira Municipality, Lira District.
4. To establish the problems street girls and boys face in lira Municipality, lira
district
5. To examine how street children survive in Lira Municipality, Lira District.
RESEARCHQUESTIONS
The study was guided by the following research questions:
1. What are ages and gender of street children and the importance of identifying
street girls in Lira Municipality, Lira District?
2. What are the causes of street children in lira municipality, Lira District?
3. What are the needs of street children in Lira Municipality, Lira district?
4. What are the problems street girls and boys face in lira municipality, Lira district?
5. How do street children survive in Lira Municipality, Lira District?
SCOPEOFTHESTUDY
The study was limited to those areas which touches the lives of street boys and girls.
These include the number of street girls and boys and their ages, causes of street children
related to the child or family, the local community and the general society; the general
felt needs and the positive and negative attributes of their activities; problems faced by
street girls and boys, mode of survival as well as their major areas of concentration.
The study covered Lira municipality, Lira District.
METHODOLOGY
RESEARCH DESIGN:
A survey research design and documentary analysis were used in this study to give a
wide coverage.
-
8/4/2019 Street Survey 2010
4/17
SAMPLING:
Ten District officials, five from the community Development services and five welfare
staff in the police unit 5 Religious leaders, 5 local authorities, 5 staff working in CivilSociety Organization on children welfare, 15 community members and 10 street children
were randomly selected. All together 45 respondents participated in the study.
INSTRUMENTS
The major instruments used were the questionnaires and the interview guide. A study
survey guide on street children and head counts by the joint staff from Child Restoration
Outreach Lira police and the firm were used. The related literature on the orphans and
the vulnerable children were also used in the study.
DATACOLLECTION:
The respondents raw data were coded using information got from the respondents
questionnaires and the interview guide to examine the age and gender of street children
and identify the street girls in the community. The researchers studied the causes of the
street girls and boys and addressed their general and felt needs. The District officials,
staff in the civil society Organization working for the welfare of the children as well as
the local authorities and religious and learned community members filled in the
questionnaires to find out the general life of street children and how they survived.
DATAANALYSIS:
The data obtained from the respondents was summarized, computed and tabulated. The
data provided by the majority respondent was qualitatively analyzed.
FINDINGS
1. AGEANDGENDEROFSTREETCHILDRENANDTHEIMPORTANCEOFIDENTIFYINGSTREETGIRLSIN
LIRAMUNICIPALITY.
-
8/4/2019 Street Survey 2010
5/17
On the number of street children living in lira municipality, it varied from respondents to
respondents. 16 respondents said street children range from 1-20, 27 respondents said
they range from 21-100 and 2 respondents said they range from 101-200. This implies
that children living on the streets in Lira Municipality averages 60 in number.
On the number of street children returning to their families, 22 respondents said they
range from 1-20, 24 respondents said they range from 40-100 while 3 respondents said
they range from 101-200. This implies that more less equal number of those who stay in
the streets are equal with those returning home with average of 60 in number.
While those street children living with their families were found out to be very few with
barely over 41 respondents saying they range from 1-5 while 4 respondents saying they
range from 6-10. In total therefore, an estimated 130 children are living and working in
the streets of Lira Town.
A closed examination of age of the street children falling below 12years is as shown in
the table below.
TABLE 1: PERCENTAGEVARIATIONINTHESTREETCHILDRENLIVINGBELOW 12YEARS
PERCENTAGERANGE % FREQUENCY
1-20 19
21-40 0741-60 02
61-80 17
81-100 00
TOTAL 45
Source: Data collected by the researcher from the field.
From the above table, it can be deduced that the percentage of street children is small the
frequency of the respondents is high in the low percentage ranges and consequently
falling between 10-12 years.
-
8/4/2019 Street Survey 2010
6/17
TABLE 2: PERCENTAGEVARIATIONINTHESTREETCHILDRENLIVINGABOVE 12 YEARS
PERCENTAGERANGE % FREQUENCY
1-20 11
21-40 1641-60 05
61-80 13
81-100 00
TOTAL 45
Source: Field.
From the above table 2, the majority respondents fall in the low percentage range
indicating that the majority of street childrens ages fall slightly above 12 presumably
12-16.
The gender of street children was analyzed. It was found out that there are many boys in
the street with majority of the respondents registering their responses in the percentage
range of 81-100% compared to girls with the majority respondents registering the
responses in the low percentage range of 1-20%.
Identification of girls on the streets is very important for planning purposes since the
public tend to have a biased mind that they are not in street.
Secondly, girls have unique needs which need a comprehensive study if they are to be
integrated in the rehabilitation centers/ learning centers and other places. Above all, girls
in the streets are more vulnerable to child abuse in an urban setting and when identified,
more protective measures can be put in place to safeguard them from the vices in the
society.
CAUSESOFSTREETCHILDRENINLIRAMUNICIPALITY, LIRADISTRICT
It was noted that there were3 category of causes of street children on the streets and these
include:
(a). CAUSESRELATEDTOTHECHILDORTHEFAMILY.
-
8/4/2019 Street Survey 2010
7/17
It was found out that there were many causes of street children directly or indirectly
related to the child or family.
The following factors ranked according their frequencies of occurrences were found out
to be on the lead in a descending order: Domestic violence, death of parents, absolute
poverty, lack of basic needs failure to educate the child, war, child neglect, indiscipline
among the children, child abuse, peer group influence, HIV/Aids, entertainment and
aggressiveness of the step father/ mother or guardian as the 13th factor.
Other factors found with minimal effects on the cause of the street children included
mental illness and other form of disabilities, polygamy, visiting relatives, fear of work
from home, poor family planning and over drinking in a family.
It was noted that those causes directly related to parents out weighed those directly
related to a child. While others were beyond a childs making.
(b) CAUSESOFSTREETCHILDRENINTHELOCALCOMMUNITY.
It was found out that the leading cause of street children in the local community is child
abuse. This ranges from defilement, beating, child labor, witchcraft, among other child
abuses.
This factor was followed by war and insecurity, peer influence, harsh tradition in the
community, HIV/Aids and community negligence, bad leadership in the community,
domestic violence in the community, early marriages ,displacement of homes ,poverty
and inadequate counseling and guidance to mention but a few in their descending order.
The following factors too were identified as the cause of street children in the
community. They include:
Poor government policy, laws and by-laws In education sales promotion by big
multinational companies and other music shows through the use of public address
systems ,creation of slums, land conflicts ,and adolescent lifestyle.
-
8/4/2019 Street Survey 2010
8/17
Whatever the causes, community contribution seems to be fairly below average in
causing street children compared to parent/ child role.
(c). CAUSESINTHEGENERALSOCIETY
The causes were analyzed and found out that wars in northern Uganda, societal
negligence, famine, poverty, and inadequate provision of education services, migration,
HIV / Aids and other diseases were on the lead in order of their appearances.
Societal conflicts, bad cultural practices in the societies, growth of slums and poor
government policy also leapfrogged to add onto other factors. It was however found out
that the prominent impact of wars in the northern Uganda in the cause of street children
were linked to the death of the parents of the street children and staying in internally
displaced peoples camps.
THENEEDSOFSTREETCHILDRENINLIRAMUNICIPALITY, LIRA DISTRICT.
For the purpose of classifying the needs of the street children, the researchers came up
with two categories and these include:
(a) GENERALNEEDS
The general needs of the street children wee found to be food, followed by education,
shelter, medical care, clothing, parental love, and security, petty job with entertainment,
money, guidance and counseling getting equal responses from the respondents.
It was observed that barely all the street children are malnourished.
Through wide consultation between the researcher and the children and their care givers,
limited access to food and difficulties in providing a balanced diet were key concerns.
It was also found out that there were very few initiatives addressing the street children in
lira municipality with exception of Child Restoration Outreach-Lira, UWESO, UK Trust,
War child Holland, Concerned Parents Association among others not forgetting the
intervention of local authorities, government servants and religious institutions.
-
8/4/2019 Street Survey 2010
9/17
(b) FELTNEEDS
The felt needs are probably the most important needs in the eyes of the street children.
From our survey we found out the following needs according to their rankings: food,
clothes, shelter, education, parental love, money, entertainment, security, healthcare, free
movement, taking drugs while other needs such as good lifestyle, luxury life, petty jobs,
socialization, and return to their parents were found to be at the same score with the
majority respondents.
On whether the needs and priorities of the street children are the same, 26 respondents
responded that they are same while 17 respondents said they are not the same.
The following reasons were found out to support the responses of the respondents who
said street children have the same needs and priorities.
All street children have a right to basic needs lead with 28 respondents followed by
parental love, security and creation in Gods image. Other reasons were found out
indiscriminate sufferings brought as a result of insurgencies (LRA wars) and HIV/ Aids
affect all of them.
Of the reasons found for the differences in needs and priorities of the street children
include the following:
They dont have enough support from their parents.
They have differences in taste and preferences of their needs.
The shift in the age makes their needs to be different.
Other factors were found to be family attributes and behavioral attributes which are
inborn and inherited.
WAYSOFFULFILLINGGENERALNEEDSANDFELTNEEDSOFTHESTREETCHILDREN
(a)GENERALNEEDS
The following ways were found to be relevant in addressing the general needs of the
street children.
Establishment of rehabilitation centers or special homes for street children took the lead
according to our respondents.
-
8/4/2019 Street Survey 2010
10/17
Providing them with basic needs, taking them back to school, counseling them,
organizing them in a group, establishing hospitals, rural development, talent
identification and promotion, freedom of expression, intervention of non governmental
organization to fund their needs, integration in the local society, returning them to their
families, providing security and money, fundraising from the donors to fund the gaps
identified and government interventions were identified to be alternative ways of
fulfilling the general needs of the street children.
(b)FELTNEEDS.
It was found out that the felt needs of the street children would be fulfilled by providing
them with the basic needs.
Other ways which follow meeting basic needs included sending them back to school,
giving them training on vocational skills, loving them, security, playing materials ,
sourcing for sponsors, integration with the family, leisure , governmental organization
interventions.
POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE ATTRIBUTES UNDERTAKEN BY STREET CHILDREN IN LIRA MUNICIPALITY,
LIRADISTRICT
(a) POSITIVEATTRIBUTES
Being a source of casual labor to people and the community was found to be on the lead
followed by selling cheap commodities to the community.
Other activities included collecting scraps (metallic), developed life skills, provision of
security, source of entertainment, giving help, creating friendship, led to the rise of many
Non Governmental Organizations and disciplining the thieves at night.
(b) NEGATIVEATTRIBUTESOFTHEIRACTIVITIES
It was found out that the frequencies of the responses from the respondents were equally
distributed on almost all attributes of the activities. Among these attributes included theft
as the lead attribute, followed by fighting, alcohol, smoking, drugs, inhaling substance,
begging, noise making, abusing people on the street, raping, gambling, loitering on the
-
8/4/2019 Street Survey 2010
11/17
streets, causing accidents, prostitution, killing fellow friends and being indiscipline in
their descending order.
PROBLEMSFACEDBYSTREETGIRLSANDBOYSINLIRAMUNICIPALITY, LIRADISTRICT.
According to research findings, it was found out that the problems facing the street girls
tend to differ from those facing street boys, although other problems cut across all the
sexes.
It was found out that lack of where to sleep was on the lead followed by what to eat. Poor
medical care was the third with rape of girls and boys falling immediately respectively.
Both boys and girls in the streets were found to be lacking clothes while those registered
their dissatisfaction on customers who cheat them.
Still in their rank, street boys and girls face death as a result of mob justice due to
stealing, followed by lack of education, security, clothes, defilement of girls, harassment
from the security guards on the streets, suffering from HIV/Aids and other diseases,
hatred by the public, forced labor, lack of guidance, lack of money, poverty,
imprisonment and others are being killed when they are innocent.
MODEOFSURVIVALOFSTREETCHILDRENINLIRAMUNICIPALITY, LIRADISTRICT
It was found out that stealing is the lead way of survival of street children, followed by
eating left over of food from the neighbors and rubbish pit.
These were followed by doing petty jobs for people and in turn they are paid , begging
money and food, collecting metallic scraps for sale, grabbing food, pick pocketing,
sleeping in hidden places and under verandas, getting food from good Samaritans such as
Child Restoration Outreach-lira in descending order according to the responses from
respondents.
It was however found out that although the leading mode of survival of street children
were offensive in nature, the positive ways of their survival lack enough support from the
community, government, Non Governmental organization, religious institutions and
persons of concern making their basic needs not to be catered.
-
8/4/2019 Street Survey 2010
12/17
WHYSOMESTREETCHILDRENINSOMEAREASEEMTOSURVIVEBETTERTHANOTHERSINTHESAME
CIRCUMSTANCES
Analysis of the reasons put forward by the respondents agreed that the street children
conditions vary from one area to another area.
It was found out that the following factors ranked in the descending order contributed to
these variations. They include:
Active street children survive better than the lazy ones. This was ranked number one.
Good relationship with the surrounding people was ranked second.
Employment opportunities (casual work) offered to some street children was also pointed
out in the cause of better survival.
The principal of survival for the fittest where strong one use their weights to access basic
needs while weak ones suffer.
Some street children trap and fore people to help them compared to their colleagues who
are adamant.
Differences in communication skills where those with good interpersonal skills could
access help from many people compared to those with poor communication skills.
It was also found out that those street children with special talents survive better than
those without special talents.
Other obedient street children accept to be instructed and they benefit from free
counseling and guidance from the community and other organizations compared to those
who are disobedient.
Some street children are fast in identifying petty jobs compared to their friends making
them to earn a fair living.
Others steal to survive better than others.
Old ones on the street know how to survive than the new ones.
Others are beggars while others shy away.
Some street children who have relatives around town survive better than those who do
not have relatives because of access to some basic needs like food, clothes and others.
Some street children who have relatives around town survive better than those who do
not have relatives because of access to some basic needs like food, clothes and those
-
8/4/2019 Street Survey 2010
13/17
street children who work in groups were found to survive better than those ones who are
isolated.
Some are provided with basic needs from the good Samaritans while others may not get
the opportunity.
Others live where there are rich people and get petty jobs faster compared to their
colleagues who live among the poor people.
Others survive well compared to their friends because they are snatchers of peoples
properties.
Some have homes and go back in the evening while others sleep in corridors and under
verandas and other hidden places.
Some street girls were found to have involved themselves in prostitution to earn a living
compared to their fellow girls and boys in the streets.
Disabled street children were found to survive poorly compared to their normal street
children who can walk faster, talk, hear and do work in order to earn a living.
Other respondents mentioned luck. Some street children are born lucky and therefore
their lucks increase every day in the streets.
Mobile ones are better off than immobile ones
While the age of the street children was found to be a factor in the variation. More elderly
ones survive better than the young ones because they can do petty jobs.
MAJORAREASOFCONCENTRATIONOFSTREETCHILDREN
The major areas of concentration of street children in lira municipality included: cuk
Atat market as the leading areas followed by bus park, lira main market, coronation park,
street corridors, Obote avenue road, Child Restoration Outreach-Lira office, Teso Bar,
Jinja Camp, Ojwina division, Te-obaya, Pipe video halls, Labor line, areas next to the
rubbish pits, Barogole, infront of Butcher, Gombolola Lira, slummy areas, lira super
market, produce line , jobless corner, cuk olok railways, washing bays, kicope, cu
komodo kakoge, and near dance halls.
-
8/4/2019 Street Survey 2010
14/17
CONCLUSIONANDRECOMMENDATIONS
CONCLUSION.
The need to know the status of the street children in lira municipality has been the core
divine of this study. For this study to achieve this primary objective several research
questions were posed and plausible solutions sought.
In order for the study to be within a manageable proportion, both in term of time and
resources, the study was limited to four divisions in lira municipality and these include:
Ojwina, railways, central and Adyel division.
It was revealed from the research that street children living in street averages 60 in
numbers. This number varies slightly from the night survey report which revealed 40
street children and note that night survey figures are limited by the fact that certain areas
of street children concentration especially the youth are not accessible at night because
they are violent. However it is not clear whether this method is effective or not.
The research also revealed the age of 12 years old was statistically significant. The age of
12 years can therefore be used to predict variation in the age of street children below or
above it.
This survey research report also revealed that the male gender was more compared to
female gender in lira municipality. However the strategies used during the survey
research did not take into account girls staying in hidden places.This survey research reports that identification of girls in the street is very important for
planning purposes since the public tend to have a biased minds that they are not many in
the street in lira municipality.
The survey research revealed that domestic violence is the lead cause of street children
which is directly linked to parents in lira municipality. Nevertheless, other causes such as
the death of parents and other s were revealed too.
The study also revealed that the causes of street children are greatly related to a child or
family and lesser to the local community and general society.
The survey research report also revealed food as number one general need and felt need
of the street children since barely all the street children are malnourished. However other
needs were also revealed through the study which is vital in the lives of street children.
-
8/4/2019 Street Survey 2010
15/17
The survey research reports that the overriding problem facing street children is where to
sleep. This was followed by what to eat. However the problems facing street girls and
boys were found to differ though majorities are the same
The study also revealed leading way of survival of street children is stealing followed by
eating left over of food from the neighbors and rubbish pits with some surviving better
than others.
RECOMMENDATIONS
RECOMMENDATIONSFORPOLICY.
1. The use of day and night survey head counts to establish the number of street
children in lira municipality should continue by Child Restoration Outreach - lira
2. Child Restoration Outreach-Lira should aim at providing more comprehensive
services to street girls though they prove difficult to be identified
3. Government, local authorities, Religious leaders, Community and Child
Restoration Outreach-Lira should design proper strategies of addressing domestic
violence and dealing with other causes of street children which are directly linked
to the family and the child
4. Government, religious leaders, local authorities, Child Restoration Outreach-Lira
and other Civil Society Organizations should ensure that the basic needs such as
food, shelter, education, medical care, clothing, parental love and other needs are
provided to the street children.
5. Local Government and Child Restoration Outreach- Lira should asses the
problems facing street girls and boys and generate ways of addressing them. They
should speedup the process of identifying street girls so that their unique problems
can be solved.
6. The Government, local communities, Child Restoration Outreach- Lira and other
Civil Society Organizations should provide alternative modes of survival of street
children that are acceptable in the society. Intensive counseling should be
administered to street children to desist from their former lives.
-
8/4/2019 Street Survey 2010
16/17
7. Child Restoration Outreach- lira should fundraise resources to enhance her
concerted effort in restoration of lives of the former street children.
8. Further research should be done to evaluate the interventions / initiatives of child
restoration outreach lira and other agencies in providing services to street girls
and boys.
-
8/4/2019 Street Survey 2010
17/17