Street Children
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Centre for Street Boys
The Centre for Street Boys is run by the Salesians. There is another centre nearby for street girls. The Salesians provide the support needed by each child.
Where possible, staff reconcile problems at home and get the boys back with their own families, while maintaining a supporting role for continuity.
When this is not possible, perhaps because the parents are dead, relatives are found and persuaded to look after the boys.
If all else fails they can, of course, stay at the centre. When the boys are older they can learn a trade.
At the weekend when there is no school, the centre remains open for children still out on the streets. They can call in, no questions asked, have a shower, wash their clothes, receive any medical help they might need and get a good meal. Naturally, children living on the streets are suspicious about enrolling at the centre, but making it available in a non-judgemental way, provides a valuable bridge of contact.
Boys letting off steam during a mid-morning break.
A group of boys smiling for the camera.
The basins are used for personal washing and for clothes. The raised platform is used to beat and scrub clothes.
Charcoal is the fuel of choice for the majority of Congolese folk. It is cheap, readily available, provides a hot steady source of heat and is not subject to power cuts which are all too frequent.
Substantial yet economical meals are provided. The staple is maize, cooked into a polenta.
Education is the most powerful tool available to improve any society. In Congo, the state makes no provision for education at all. It is mostly the churches who organise this service but they cannot provide schools for everyone.
Lessons continue.
A view of the courtyard at the centre for street boys.
