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What is the issue?
Walking down the streets of Ho Chi Minh City, it is common to see young children working selling chewing gum, flowers, lottery tickets, post cards, and even begging, well into the night. They are often unnoticed or brushed off as a nuisance by passersby. Some work from evening to dawn, hoping to make a sale to tourists or late night partygoers.
How did these children end up on the streets? Some of them are unable to attend school because they must work to support their family, who are often migrants who came to the city in search of higher wages. Others were sold into bondage by their family in rural areas in exchange for a lump sum of money that the child is expected to work off in the city.
What's being done about it?
IOM, in partnership with local NGOs such as Thao Dan, seeks to provide the children with a caring and nurturing environment, shelter, food, health care, education, and family reunification when possible – basic needs that every child deserves.
IOM and its partners first speak to the children on the streets where they work or live. When needed, the child is introduced to a shelter, where they will receive much-needed meals, health check-ups, and love and care. The shelter is also remains open to all street children who need to rest, bathe, wash clothes, eat… Unfortunately, the longer a child has been living on the street, the more difficult it is to keep them under a roof. This is why it is important to gain the trust of the children through support and provide assistance as early as possible.
 Interventions provided to the children include home visits and family reunification, health care, and assistance gaining legal papers such as ID cards and birth certificates. Without these documents, the children are not able to register to enroll in school.
The shelters also provide classes to help the children catch up with their school-going peers. When possible, the parents receive assistance so that the child can return to school.
Counseling is also given to the children on life skills such as personal hygiene, what to do in emergency situations, and the dangers of using drugs. Interactive methods are used to keep the children interested and engaged, such as drawing, role-playing, and group activities.
Story of an outreach educator
I work as a teacher with Thao Dan and I am responsible for an area popular with foreign tourists. Many children are brought here from rural provinces to earn money for an ‘employer,’ often staying in Ho Chi Minh City for one year in exchange for a $150 payout to the parents.
One girl, Linh, who is 13 years old, came from the central region of Vietnam near Hue. She was forced to work from 7 PM to 5 AM and had to give all the money earned to her ‘employer.’ If she could not make enough sales, she was verbally abused.
Linh was sad, missed her family, cried and told me that they wanted to go home. I managed to contact her family to inform them of the situation of their daughter, but her parents had already used the money received and felt they had no choice except for their daughter to continue working until the end of her contract.
One day while doing outreach work, Linh found me and said, "I want to escape now, I don’t want to stay at Nhan’s house anymore. I want to go to your shelter!" Reporting Linh’s situation to the local authorities, Thao Dan provided immediate shelter to Linh while simultaneously working with her family to provide a stable environment and to enroll her in school. Unfortunately there are many more children like Linh that are still desperate to escape from situations such as these.
Please support us.
Please support us in our efforts to empower this neglected group of young people to reach their dreams and lift themselves and their families out of poverty.
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