CAUSES OF CHILDREN’S STREETISM AND ITS INTERVANTION STRATEGIES IN KIRKOS-SUB CITY OF ADDISABABA CITY ADMINISTRATION

Abstract

This study is attempted to explore the causes of children’s streetism and interventions strategies in selected areas of Kirkos sub- city of Addis Ababa particularly, Flouha and “Legehar” areas. The thesis has three objectives. These are: To assess the main reasons leading children to streetism, To identify the efforts have been done so far to restore street children, To identify measure should be taken and intervention strategies designed to ease the problem of streetism To achieve these objectives, the research focused on exploratory research design and qualitative research approach. A combination of data collecting methods, with a comprehensive interview that established through a written interview guide for data collection was employed. Concerning the sources of data, the study used data from both primary and secondary sources. The primary source included, identified street children, experts of governmental organizations working on street children issues, community elders and members involved in different occupations and faith based organizations representatives in the sub-city. The secondary data gathered through document review and analysis, including books, journals, legal documents,, conference papers and annual The total of 35 respondents selected through the use of both snowball and purposive sampling technique, Out of which 15 of them were street children, 20 participants are from concerned government experts, community elders, community members engaged on different occupations, and FBOs representatives. The study found that the number of children on the Street of Flouha, and Leghar areas, in Kirkos Sub-City of Addis Ababa, increased from year to year. Regard to this as the report from the subcity social protection desk indicates the numbers of children mobilized from the area to rehabilitation centers in 2021, 2022 and 2023 were counted to 1005, 1408 and1570 respectively. In addition the findings revealed the causes for the number of children on the street increase, and the life of streetisim expansion, are mainly as due to socio-cultural, Socio - economic, and other related factors. Related to socio-cultural matters, the family size, family disintegration, reorganization of family system, and death of parents and also peers pressure identified. In respect to Socio-economic factors, family poverty and hope for better life highly contributed. Other factors as well related to city life attraction, false information about city life, tribal conflict and neighbor violence stated. The life of streetism was very challenging, harsh and unable them to viii meet basic necessities, of food, cloth and sleeping places, and exposed to different types of exploitations. On other hand the government, nongovernment organizations (NGOs) and different faith based institutions have made remarkable efforts, though cannot resolve the challenges. To this respect, the study commend to establish an intervention strategy with a workable policies that closely deals on the root cause of the problems, in improving city centered policies, encouraging the participation and strengthen the cooperation among all concerned parties mainly of the local administration and the community members.