| POVERTY IN AFRICA : STORIES |
  ACCRA, Ghana – At a Guinea worm containment centre in Savelugu, northern Ghana, Assana Mohammed, 10, cries out in pain. Her eyes are shut and she cannot help but try to remove the health worker’s hand from her wound. Little by little, he is extracting a long white Guinea worm from her ankle.
Guinea worm, a parasite, gets into the human body when a person drinks water infested with fleas that have ingested the larvae. The worms grow inside the body, sometimes reaching more than a metre in length and eventually erupting through the skin.
Poverty in Africa: Child labor: Ghana
The condition causes unbearable pain for weeks and months, preventing the sufferer from engaging in daily activities. Guinea worm therefore has an adverse economic and social impact, in addition to its terrible health effects.
poverty in Ghana: guinea worm
Infections on the rise
Assana is one of more than 2,000 children who suffer from Guinea worm in Ghana, where 4,130 cases – the second highest number of any country in the world – were reported in 2006. And the number of victims seems to be on the rise. By the end of March this year, over 2,200 cases had been reported, already more than half of last year’s total.
Savelugu, a small town in the Savelugu-Nanton District of Ghana’s Northern Region, used to enjoy a regular supply of clean water – before the water system was no longer able to meet the needs of a growing population.
While some water is still available in the centre of the town, it is scarcely enough for those living on the outskirts. As a result, the community has resorted to the use of untreated dam water, dugouts and unprotected hand-dug wells. Poverty in Africa : Ghana
Over the years, these unsafe sources have become the only water supply for many of Savelugu’s children and their families. Poverty in Ghana
‘Donkey boy’ vendors
Because of this shortage of safe water, Savelugu has fallen victim to Guinea worm, a debilitating waterborne disease. In 2006, the town was the most Guinea worm-endemic community in Ghana. With virtually no running water available, children regularly walk about 2 km to the nearest dam to fetch water that is infested with the Guinea worm parasite.
An unfortunate mix of demand and opportunity has led some of these children to become suppliers of harmful water. guinea worm disease: Ghana
Known in Savelugu as ‘donkey boys’, these water vendors use donkeys to haul drums of unfiltered water between the dam and the community. In any random group of 10 vendors, only 1 or 2 are likely to be in school.
Eight hours of hauling water. Poverty in Africa: Ghana: guinea worm | Diseases and child labor in Africa | |
| CHILD LABOR IN AFRICA-GHANA |
Sulemana Alhassan, 13, has been a water vendor since he was 8. He does not go to school. “I was in Class 1 when my father took my brother and me to farm in Walewale,” he says. “After harvesting, he bought this donkey for us to cart water for money.”
Sulemana’s day begins as early as 5:30 a.m., and he carts water back and forth until 1 p.m. Sometimes, to keep up with customers’ demands, he starts again at 4 p.m. Since there is only one donkey to carry the loads, his elder brother’s job is to solicit customers
A drum of water often goes for 6,000 cedis (about 67 cents or .6 GHS). On an average day, the brothers sell about five drums. All the money they earn goes to their father, who uses it to buy food. Poverty Ghana
Even though Sulemana says he wants to be in school instead of fetching water every day, he seems resigned to his fate. child labor in Africa: Ghana
Water filtering brings hope
To accommodate its population of 29,000, Savelugu has many other young water vendors like Sulemana whose hopes of accomplishing their full potential fade a little more with each passing day. And instead of being part of the solution, they are now contributing to one of their community’s biggest problems.
Over time, however, interventions by UNICEF Ghana and others have brought hope to the people of Savelugu.
Unicef: poverty in Africa: Ghana
In partnership with the national Guinea Worm Eradication Team and others, UNICEF recently supported the local District Assembly in training 180 young water vendors to filter water at the source before they distribute it.
In a three-phase project, UNICEF and partners are also providing mechanized systems to supply safe water in parts of Savelugu. The entire project will serve up to 80 per cent of the community. At the same time, UNICEF has initiated a project to repair a dysfunctional Ghana Water Company Limited system and supplement it with a mechanized borehole. Africa News: Poverty Ghana
 CHILD TRAFFICKING IN AFRICA
In April, news reports circulated internationally that a Nigerian-registered "slave ship" carrying 250 children was sailing off the coast of West Africa. When it finally docked in Benin, no children were actually found on board. Nevertheless, the furor aroused by the reports helped "put a spotlight" on the reality of child trafficking in the region, notes Mr. Alec Fyfe, a senior adviser on child labour for UNICEF. "Trafficking is beginning to get on the policy agenda," he told Africa Recovery.
child trafficking in Africa
Because trafficking tears children away from the protection of their families and communities, it is especially perilous to their well being. An ILO study issued in June found that child trafficking in West and Central Africa is on the rise. Reports from Benin, Burkina, Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, Gabon, Ghana, Mali, Nigeria and Togo suggest that most of the children are sent to other countries for domestic service, or put to work on plantations, in petty trade, as beggars and in soliciting. The trafficking of children for commercial sexual exploitation was also reported. child slavery: Africa
Trafficked children, the study found, were working between 10 and 20 hours a day, carrying heavy loads and operating dangerous tools. They often lack adequate food and drink. Nigeria reported that one out of five children trafficked in that country died of illness or accidents. Others contracted sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV/AIDS. Although parents were sometimes persuaded by recruiters to send their children away to earn some extra income, often neither the children nor the parents were paid.
child trafficking in Africa: West Africa
In fact, many such children are "treated like slaves," according to Dr. Rima Salah, UNICEF regional director for West and Central Africa. In a paper presented to a pan-African conference on "human trafficking" held in Nigeria in February, Dr. Salah agreed with the ILO assessment that child labour trafficking has become a "substantial problem" in the region
child labor and child trafficking in Africa
.. POVERTY IS NOT NATURAL...
POVERTY NEVER TAKES A HOLIDAY | NEW!!! GLOBAL ISSUES FORUM | | |
|
CHILD LABOR AND HUNGER STORIES - POVERTY IN UZBEKISTAN
NODIRA'S STORY
Name: NODIRA
Age: 18
Country: Uzbekistan
 Nodira, which means 'unique' in Uzbek, is one of five children in a poor family. Every morning, after reciting her prayers, Nodira feeds the hens and goats from her wheelchair. The rest of her day is spent knitting for other people and helping her mother with the household chores.
Nodira has never been to school because it is too far from her home and inaccessible for her wheelchair. A local teacher used to come and tutor her at home and, as a result, she was able to finish third grade. After that, her parents moved to another town and the tutor's visits became more sporadic.
poverty Uzbekistan
Despite the many difficulties and frustrations that plague Nodira's life she is fortunate to be living with her family. The stigma attached to children living with disabilities, combined with the lack of wheelchair access in schools and the economic difficulties faced by many Uzbek families following the collapse of the Soviet Union, have led many parents to place children with disabilities in special institutions. In fact, of the 23,000 children in institutional care in Uzbekistan, 19,626 have disabilities. poverty in Uzbekistan
These days, Nodira does homework exercises at home and reads as much as she can. Still, it is unlikely that she will be able to finish her primary education, much less attend university. While missing out on an education is a great disappointment to Nodira, her greatest wish - a true friend - can still come true. Poverty Uzbekistan
"What I want more than anything is a friend who also has a disability," she says. "Somebody to talk to that will not feel sorry for me or make fun of me, somebody who will understand what my life is like." poverty Uzbekistan
|
|
WORLD POVERTY STORIES - CHILD POVERTY IN CAMBODIA
LEEDA'S STORY
Name: LEEDA
Age: 14
Country: Cambodia
 Since her mother left, Leeda has been in charge of the household. Every day she cooks, cleans and takes care of her brothers. A phone number to contact her mother in case of emergency is carved on one of the house's wooden beams. poverty Cambodia
Leeda is now in the seventh grade at the Dey Thoy School with a scholarship from the OPTIONS Programme, which is run by World Education with support from UNICEF, the United States Department of Labor and The McKnight Foundation. Despite her family's acute poverty and her responsibilities as her brothers' caretaker, she dreams of attending university and becoming a health worker. poverty in Cambodia
The OPTIONS Programme offers weekly life skills classes geared to girls living in poverty who, like Leeda, are particularly vulnerable to exploitation and abuse. The topics range from trafficking and sexual exploitation, to reproductive health and HIV/AIDS prevention to vocational awareness and rice agriculture.
"In these classes, the girls learn critical thinking, problem solving and teamwork skills and develop confidence and self-awareness," says Sok Kimsroeung, Programme Manager for OPTIONS in Prey Veng.
To ensure that Cambodian girls receive an education and are given the tools to protect themselves from exploitation the Cambodian government developed the National Education for All Plan 2003-2015. Poverty Cambodia
As a result of the efforts such as OPTIONS and those of the national government enrolment rates for primary school topped 90 per cent in 2004-05 and the gender gap decreased from 7.4 per cent in 1999-2000 to less than 3 per cent in 2004-05. But more needs to be done to keep children, especially girls, in school. For Leeda, education is the only hope she has of making a better life for herself and staying safe. World poverty: child labour and hunger: poverty Cambodia
|
|
CHILD LABOR - CHILD POVERTY - POVERTY IN VENEZUELA
YULEINI'S STORY
Name: YULEINI
Age: 13
Country: Venezuela
 During the day, when Yuleini's mother and stepfather are at work, it is up to the 13-year-old to care for the four children: cook their meals in an old stove, wash their clothes and hang them on the metal sheets that double as walls and play with them amidst the rubble that surrounds their home.Since 2004, however, Yuleini has been able to do something she had never done before: go to school. A joint project of the Light and Life Foundation (Fundacion Luz y Vida), UNICEF and UNILEVER, has enabled her to attend community classrooms especially designed to provide excluded children from Petare with an education.
"Going to school has changed my life, I've learnt many things and made friends," says Yuleini. "But what I like most is my teacher, because she listens to me and is very loving." The classroom has become a safe haven for Yuleini and for the 5,000 boys and girls who are currently benefiting from the project. So far, 60 per cent of the children attending the community classrooms have been integrated into the formal education system. poverty in Venezuela
Having access to school was not easy for Yuleini. When UNICEF first reported this story, Yuleini said that her parents were dead and that she lived with her sister, her brother-in-law and her nephews. As the story was being edited, Yuleini's mother (whom we then believed to be her sister) revealed that she and Yuleini had lied about the true nature of their relationship. As it turns out, Yuleini's mother gave birth to the girl when she was herself a 16-year-old teenager. She never registered Yuleini's birth and left her with her own mother, Yuleini's grandmother, in Colombia while she looked for work in Caracas.
Following the grandmother's death in 2002 Yuleini's mother brought her to live with her, her new husband and their four children. Having no birth registration, however, meant that Yuleini could not go to school and so her mother decided to say that Yuleini had no documents because she had no parents. Thus, what began as the story of a poor, orphaned girl became a much more complex account of how poverty, teenage pregnancy and lack of birth registration affected the lives of several generations within one family.The many difficulties that Yuleini has faced in her short life have made her wise beyond her years. "I've seen what happens to other kids in my neighbourhood who don't go to school," she says. "They spend their days sniffing glue, begging for money and getting into trouble. I feel sorry for them." She is especially mindful of what can happen to young girls who live in poverty and have little access to education "I don't want to get married and have children, at least not anytime soon," she declares. "I want to work and study. I don't want to be like another girl I know who is 13 years old and already pregnant." child poverty: poverty Venezuela
HIMAL'S STORY
Name: HIMAL
Age: 16
Country: Nepal
 Himal is one of eight children in a family struggling to make ends meet. To supplement the meager earnings produced by the family's small corn harvest, Himal's father spends half of the year away from home, working as a porter. Like many other boys in the districts of eastern Nepal, Himal used to help his father by carrying loads while his mother and sisters stayed behind to take care of the farm. Making a living took priority over education for the Magar family and Himal only went to school for about a week. As the influence of the Maoist rebels seeking to overthrow the Nepalese monarchy in Udayapur grew stronger, Himal's father became increasingly worried about his son's future. Initially, the rebels had tried to entice young boys like Himal to join the revolution. But they soon became bolder in their demands and, under the 'one family one child' policy, they required each household to bequeath one teenage child for the people's army. In order to save the then 14-year-old Himal from being forcibly recruited by the rebels, his father sent him to Biratnagar, the second largest city in Nepal. There, Himal became a domestic worker, taking care of his employer's cows and cleaning his house for US$7 a month. Sending children to work in the city has been a long-standing practice among poor Nepalese families living in rural areas. However, since the beginning of the political conflict in 1996, there has been a sharp increase in this trend. Parents hope that the urban areas will keep their children safe from the rebels, afford them better earnings, and give them a chance at an education. While Himal was able to evade recruitment by the rebels by coming to Biratnagar, going to school seemed like an impossible dream until a representative from the Forum for Human Rights and Environment convinced his employer to send him to an urban out-of-school programme. The Forum reaches out to underprivileged children, especially domestic child workers, with nonformal education. They send Forum's staff to comb the neighborhoods of Biratnagar and identify working children who are out of school. The next step is convincing the children's employers to send them to a two-hour daily class. The urban out-of-school programme is an intensive course consisting of two 10-month sessions during which the children learn the basics of reading, writing and math. Once they complete the programme they are mainstreamed into regular schools, usually at the fifth or sixth grade level. In addition to a formal education, the children also attend domestic child workers' clubs, have access to books and television, participate in dances and theatre and learn about their rights. These days, Himal manages all his cow-hand duties, goes to class and also attends his club activities. Himal's face visibly lights up when he is with his friends. He has just completed his first 10 months of education and is already reading and writing and doing basic addition and subtraction. He is looking forward to studying more and joining school, and dreams of becoming a banker. Himal, it turns out, is also a performer. A play that he and other children from the child workers' club prepared for the International Day Against Child Labour won them first place in a competition organized by the International Labour Organization (ILO) in Biratnagar. Last summer, he was selected to be one of five teenagers representing Nepal in the Young People's Festival in South Korea, where he performed traditional Nepali dances and met other young people from 32 countries. Most other Nepalese children are not as fortunate as Himal. poverty in Nepal : child poverty and Hunger
Only 65 per cent of children enrolled in primary school complete a fifth grade education and just 31 per cent enroll in secondary school. Social exclusion and poor quality of education create a nexus that keeps the children of the poorest families out of schools. Over a third of Nepalis live on less than $1 a day so even though primary education is free, many parents don't have the money to buy school uniforms, books and stationary for their children.
World poverty stories: child labor: Poverty Nepal | |
| CHILD LABOR IN AFRICA-NIGERIA |
 Isaiah has spent 5 of his 15 years living on the streets of Lagos, Nigeria, the second largest city of Africa. Like hundreds of other children, he spends his days and nights in this sprawling metropolis trying to fend for himself.
Poverty Nigeria
“It is not easy living on the street but what can I do?” asks Isaiah, one of 25 children who have told their stories on Nigerian national radio through a UNICEF-supported project. child labor africa: Nigeria
“I have two sisters that I have not seen in five years, I have smoked Indian hemp like other boys of my age, got beaten by bigger boys, robbed of my money, took my bath in the canal and slept under the bridge,” Isaiah says in one broadcast. “The good thing is that I am alive!” poverty Africa
Given the opportunity to go to school, Isaiah says he would like to become a lawyer. “I want to be defending people,” he explains.
VOICES FROM THE STREET
The UNICEF-supported Child-to-Child Network, a non-governmental organization, worked with Radio Nigeria to train children in radio production so they could tell their own stories. The resulting series, ‘Voices from the Street’, was broadcast to more than 60 million . Poverty Nigeria : stories
poverty in africa : news
Some of the children in the series tell of escapes from unhappy homes, while others recall travelling to the city in search of adventure. They end up selling water packaged in plastic bags or washing the windshields of vehicles in heavy traffic.
Poverty Nigeria
Isaiah works as a ‘bus conductor’ – collecting fares from passengers who squeeze onto the yellow commercial buses of Lagos. He earns $5 to $6 a day.
At the age of 10, Isaiah left his home in Ogun State. A friend, who turned out to be a child-labour recruiter, invited him to Lagos along with 11 other boys. “We left home without telling any of our parents,’ Isaiah says. child labor in africa: street children
SURVIVAL ON THE STREETS
The recruiter paid the boys’ bus fare to Lagos. Then he took the boys to the city’s biggest market and motor park “to sell them,” according to Isaiah.
“The more people he brings, the higher his ‘rank’ goes and the more money he gets paid,” Isaiah adds. “I was eventually sold to one man for a fee of 5,000 Naira [about $40]. The man took me to a place I do not know; my duty there was to be a housekeeper.”
Isaiah decided to run away. He met up with other street children who showed him how to survive on his own. Poverty Nigeria
Poverty stories West - Africa : Nigeria
“I started to sleep under the bridge or inside any of the buses parked under the bridge,” he says. “If mosquitoes are too many, I sleep inside the boot of the vehicles." Poverty Africa : Nigeria | Help fight child labor in Africa | |
|
CHILD POVERTY IN AFRICA |
Getting the children to tell their stories was a challenge, says ‘Voices from the Street’ producer Funke Treasure Durudola. When the most taciturn of the boys finally opened up, she adds, it was the high point of her 12-year broadcasting career. Poverty Nigeria
“You have to be empathetic. Connect with them first and they must connect with you, too, before you can get their story,” says Ms. Durudola. SAVE THE CHILDREN
UNICEF and the Child-to-Child Network also offered to help reunite the children with their families, or to find other rehabilitation possibilities.
Isaiah hopes his family can hear his story on the radio. “I pray that the people of my place will listen,” he says. “They will hear that I am still alive and that I am a big man now.” child labor Africa: Nigeria
"LACK OF INFORMATION"
OGUN, Nigeria, 26 October 2007 – Adefolu Olusoji is a retired civil servant and a poultry farmer in the sprawling slum of Mowe in Ogun, Nigeria. He was also among over 30 community members who participated in a recent open dialogue on avian influenza held at the Palace of Baale in south-west Nigeria.
Mr. Olusoji recently lost more than 4,000 chickens to bird flu – leaving him without income and searching for answers.
“When I retired, I felt the business I could do is be a poultry farmer, but I had no idea what to do to avoid diseases such as bird flu. My chickens started dying quickly and in large numbers,” said Mr. Olusoji.
Poverty in Africa: Nigeria
The lack of adequate information about bird flu has been a major factor contributing to its spread in Nigeria. From just a single avian influenza case in 2006, the disease now affects 97 Local Government Areas, and the threat continues to grow. Poverty Africa-Nigeria
CHILD LABOR IN BURKINA FASO
In some of the poorest provinces of Burkina Faso, villages are "haemorrhaging" their children, several local journalists reported after a recent tour through Sanguié, Nayala, Kossi and other parts of that West African nation. They uncovered a recurring story: countless children, mostly under the age of 14, have left their families in search of work elsewhere in the country or across the border in neighbouring Côte d'Ivoire. Some departed "voluntarily" or at the urging of their parents to escape the severe poverty of their home areas. Others were ensnared by labour traffickers. Poverty Burkina Faso
In almost all cases, according to some of the children who managed to return, they ended up in arduous and poorly paid jobs on plantations or in domestic service, often at great risk to their health, sometimes beaten or prey to sexual predators. Eric Bationo, a child in Réo, was kidnapped in 1997 and did not come back until three years later, suffering from gangrene, according to his mother. poverty Africa : West Africa
Faced with a clear increase in "such abominable practices," stated Mr. Boniface Coulibaly, secretary-general of Kadiogo province, "the highest authorities of our country could not simply cross their arms or close their eyes." In May, the national government ratified Convention 182 of the International Labour Organization (ILO) prohibiting the worst forms of child labour. And like a number of other countries in Africa, it launched a campaign, supported by the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) and other agencies, to oppose the practice.
Local government authorities, child welfare experts, community leaders and rights activists have begun educating parents about the dangers of child labour. According to the ILO, slightly more than 51 per cent of all children in Burkina between the ages of 10 and 14 work, even though the labour code bars employment under 14. poverty Africa
Across Africa, there are an estimated 80 million child workers, a number that could rise to 100 million by 2015. Since the problem is closely linked to the continent's poverty, and can only be eliminated with increases in family incomes and children's educational opportunities, UNICEF, the ILO and other groups are focusing initially on the "worst forms" of child labour. These include forced labour and slavery, prostitution, employment in the drug trade and other criminal activities, and occupations that are especially dangerous to children's health and security. Africa News: child labor
....POVERTY IS MAN-MADE...
HELP NOW! HELP FIGHT CHILD LABOR
| | NEW!!! WORLD ISSUES FORUM | | |
