The situation of street children in the tourist city of Goma, in North-Kivu, has reached an alarming level. Local officials, as well as Guel Mamlaka, spokesperson for the Youth Parliament of North-Kivu, are calling for greater parental responsibility. Their involvement could have a significant impact on the rate of these homeless children.
Factors Behind the Crisis
According to Mamlaka, there are many reasons why children abandon their homes for the street. Among them, juvenile delinquency, the death of parents, lack of support for orphans, and socio-economic problems at home. The consequences are severe: death, sexually transmitted diseases, unwanted pregnancies, among other problems.
Mamlaka and the Youth Parliament of North-Kivu are calling on provincial governments and the mayor of Goma to find solutions to this crisis. “The first person responsible for the entire population of the city of Goma, including children living on certain streets, is the city’s mayor. He is the first responsible and he must seek suitable solutions to this situation,” Mamlaka declared.
Parents: Part of the Solution?
Parents we met on Tuesday, August 8, 2023 highlighted several factors contributing to this situation, including family, economic, social, and political problems. One woman told us: “In a few words, children leave their homes to become street children because there is a disagreement between parent and child, and here the factor of poverty plays a big role”.
She urges parents to take responsibility and calls on the government to help families whose children are on the street, to figure out how to bring them back home.
Some street children we met at the Imstigo roundabout indicated that the loss of their parents had pushed them onto this path, while others claim that it was their parents who pushed them onto the street. “We do not want to stay on the streets of the city of Goma. Some of us have lost both parents. We ask the government to help us by offering us jobs that will allow us to earn our living,” expressed one of these children.
The city of Goma is one of the cities in the DRC where the number of street children is the highest. Faced with this crisis, parental responsibility is more than ever sought. Their commitment could play a crucial role in reducing the number of street children in Goma.
Bienfait Tumsifu from Goma.
