Reena

Reena, aged 12 lives with her mother, father and two siblings in a rented room in Kathmandu.

FAMILY LIFE ON THE STREET

The family migrated to the city in search of employment. Her father works as a bricklayer and her mother is a domestic worker in the city, both must work to contribute to the household costs, but due to the informal, temporary nature of both jobs, the family income can be quite unstable. Due to the need for both parents to earn an income, Reena became responsible for taking care of the home and the younger children, aged 11 and 8 years old. This of course meant Reena was not able to attend school regularly.

Over time Reena found herself contributing to the household income by working in local hotels washing dishes, alongside other street children from her community.

OUTREACH WORK WITH STREET FAMILIES

Through outreach work our partner SathSath came into contact with Reena and her family. Reena began to spend time at a learning centre and received support from counsellors, her parents attended meetings to learn more about the importance of their responsibilities towards their children and the significance of their children receiving an education.

““My life has changed a lot. I feel like my study habit is gradually increasing day by day, as a result my first term results were good. My self-confidence has increased, I participate in different extra activities at school and the learning centre, including dance, art and crafts.”” Reena

Reena was then able to take the next step and regularly attend school, she now supports small children after school with their learning as she continues to attend the learning centre.

LIFE CHANGING LEARNING FOR STREET CHILDREN

Reena’s confidence and awareness has increased, she actively speaks to her friends about their lack of safety on the streets, encouraging them to join her at school. Reena has also been spending her time teaching other children about personal hygiene and sanitation, sharing the knowledge she has gained at the learning centre.

Reena can now be found taking part in dances, quizzes, art and crafts and recently a speech competition. When she returns home, Reena carries out household chores and looks after her siblings in the evenings.

“I took part in a group dance performance on international children’s day which was held in learning centre, that event helped me to increase my self confidence. I now have knowledge on lots of new things and I am happy living with my family.” Reena

Find out more about education support for street children, or give the gift of a stationery pack or school uniform to a street child in Nepal.