International Day for Street Children – Changing the Narrative through Child Sponsorship

by World Hope International | Apr 11, 2023 | Child Sponsorship

Selling peanuts for hours in the hot sun, chasing moving vehicles with baskets of gum hoping the driver will stop and buy some, begging for loose change, selling yourself as cheap labor to support your family:

This is the life of a street child.

World Hope International proactively works to keep children off the streets through child sponsorship programs that support both children and their families by alleviating the substantial financial burden that education entails in many countries around the world. When a child’s tuition is paid and they receive school supplies and a uniform through World Hope child sponsorship, their parents don’t have to decide whether to feed the family or send one of their children to school. They don’t have to decide which one of their children most deserves an education. They don’t have to send their children into vulnerable situations in order to make ends meet. No parent should have to face such decisions.

This was Helena’s daily reality before her three children were supported through World Hope’s Child Sponsorship program in Liberia. “Sometimes, to afford the school fees, it took time because we were paying tuition [for ourselves],” she said. “My three children were put out of school many days for [not paying] school fees.”

school kids with school supplies in Liberia

When her children could finally attend school, Helena had to send them there hungry because they could not afford both school and food. Can you imagine having to choose between an education or food for your child?

Since becoming part of World Hope’s program, Helena says, “They give our children uniforms, copybooks, and other materials. The burden of [the cost] school has been reduced. Since the program, life has been improving. I can now prepare a meal for them to eat before going to school; and after school, they eat again!”

Since tuition is now paid for, Helena’s financial resources can be redirected. As a result, she has started her own business managing a neighborhood grocery store, in order to better care for and support her family.

This not only impacts Helena and her family; the entire community benefits from World Hope’s Child Sponsorship program. Helena noted, “Before, if you walked into the community during school hours, you would see many children who were not going to school. When you asked, ‘why are you not in school?’ they would say ‘my parents don’t have money to send me to school.’ But now, most of the children are in school.”

World Hope’s Child Sponsorship program gives renewed hope to parents who formerly had to decide between sending a child to school or feeding their family. Now children are no longer on the streets but instead are being nourished in both body and mind, receiving an education in order to reach their full potential.

By sponsoring a child you provide parents the opportunity to keep children off the streets, allow for children to have an education and have a far-reaching impact on the communities in which they live.