ChildHope Asia

An international, non-sectarian organization advocating for the cause of street children

throughout the world.

THE JOURNEY FROM CHILDHOPE

INTERNATIONAL TO CHILDHOPE PHILIPPINES
Childhope International, founded as a non-governmental organisation in 1986,
was the first international movement on behalf of street children. Established
under the guidance of leading global organisations including UNICEF, the
World Council of Churches and Save the Children Sweden, Childhope
International was soon looking to set up regional offices in the US, UK and Asia.
Ms. Teresita Silva, then a full-time consultant for UNICEF Philippines, represented UNICEF
Philippines at a Childhope International Board Meeting, where she was tasked with
establishing a regional office for Childhope in Southeast Asia. In May 1989, Childhope hosted
the First Asian Regional Conference for Street Children in Manila, cementing its regional
presence in Southeast Asia and eventually covering all of Asia. Childhope Asia, the regional
office of Childhope International, opened in June 1989 in Manila.

STREET CHILDREN AT RISK

Street children comprise about 1-3% of the children and youth population of
the major cities in the Philippines. Metro Manila and the National Capital
Region (NCR) have an estimated 30,000 children on the streets, while
nationwide, some 250,000 street children are believed to be plying the streets
of major urban centers. From available studies, most are boys aged 7 to 16
years. About 75% of them still return home to families, after working or
begging on the streets.
The situation of children working and/or living on the street is viewed as a violation of the
rights of children. The five major causes for children to take to the streets are poverty and
large families; unemployment/ underemployment; limited access to basic social services;
breakdown of family structures; and the shift from traditional values that tend to be
consumeristic and materialistic. The immediate trigger is often physical or sexual abuse
within the family. When these children experience family problems, hunger, neglect and
domestic violence, they escape from their homes and live part-time, or even full-time on the
streets. Some are simply abandoned.

While on the streets, these children are exposed to very harsh and dangerous elements.
They suffer from hunger, cold, sickness, abuse, and exploitation. Among the street children,
the street girls are the most vulnerable to maltreatment, sexual abuse and exploitation. 30%
of street children are girls.

Most street children are child workers, working and/or living on the streets and engaged in
vending, car washing, scavenging, begging, peddling drugs, prostitution and petty
theft. Boys, just as often as girls, are sexually abused. These children are often in conflict
with the law and the authorities.

WHO ARE THESE STREET CHILDREN?

In the metro area in the Philippines it is,
sadly, not an uncommon sight to see children
selling flowers or begging at car windows
when they should be in school. These make
up some of the population of the Street
Children we work with. The definition of
‘street children’ is contested, but many
practitioners and policymakers use UNICEF’s
concept of boys and girls aged under 18 for
whom ‘the street’ (including unoccupied
dwellings and wasteland) has become home
and/or their source of livelihood; and who are
inadequately protected or supervised (Black,
1993).
Based on our experience at Childhope Philippines, we have grouped the Street Kids we
service in three categories, which are generally accepted by Social workers:

1. STREET BASED CHILDREN – These are the children who have no guardians or
homes and eseentially live and work on the streets. They may either be runaways or
have been abandoned by their parents. Children in this category are some of our most
vulnerable clients and Childhope always seeks to find ways to get them to a safer
environment.
2. CHILDREN OF STREET BASED FAMILIES – The children in this category stay with
their families, who are themselves homeless and who make their living off of the
street.The dangers and hardships of living on the streets are no less for this group, even
though they might have their parents or guardians with them.
3. COMMUNITY BASED CHILDREN – This group makes up the majority of our clients.
These are children who work on the streets but return home daily to their families in the
community. Many of them receive formal school education, but they take to the streets
to earn what they can so that their families can eat and they can go to school. These
children are also in a precarious position as they are exposed to predators and
dangerous situations on a daily basis.

WHAT WE DO
Childhope aims to empower street children and their families, and to help them to gain access
to a more developmental and productive future. Its banner program, The Street Education
and Protection Program (STEP) believes in “education without borders”, where the
Alternative Education sessions seek to make a difference in the lives of street children by
giving them the opportunities for holistic development as well as the ability to learn to read
and write. It provides for basic and urgent needs to support and ensure the continuous and
holistic learning and development which include psychosocial interventions, medical and
health services, paralegal assistance and skills training among street children. Childhope
assists them to develop the values they need so they can grow up to become caring,
confident, responsible, and resilient members of society.

Childhope also has the widest scope of program areas in terms of geographical reach as it
covers 15 areas in 6 cities of Metro Manila, and reaches out to about 1,000 to 1,200 street
children every year. Since its inception in 1995 up to the present, Childhope has already
assisted about 10,500 street children.
In 2001, Childhope was awarded for Best Practice in Social Work and Social Service by CSA
Social Services Abstracts and Social Services Infonet. Through the Street Education
Program, Childhope aims to enable the street children to protect themselves on and off the
streets, empower them to claim their rights and carry out their responsibilities, prepare them
for independent living and reintegration back to society, or if feasible, reunite them with their
families and/or relatives. Childhope prioritizes completely abandoned and neglected street
children who live alone on the streets.

MEET THE TEAM

BOARD OF TRUSTEES

Ms. Teresita L. Silva

Founder and President Emeritus

Dr. Jaime Z. Galvez Tan

Chairman