PROJECT #178

Project #178 | Rehabilitation for Children Experiencing Homelessness

Our partnership with Hope for Life

In the surrounding areas of Kigali, Rwanda, it is estimated that 3,000 children experience homelessness on a daily basis. The average child is a boy between the ages of 11-14, although children as young as 4 have been identified. In order to survive homelessness, children spend their days begging or performing small jobs, and may resort to violence and petty theft. At night, a common sleeping place is in underground sewer gutters as they provide  protection from both violence and the cold. While the majority of children have at least one living parent, homelessness is especially prevalent due to the presence of abuse, neglect, and/or extreme poverty at home. 

One Day’s Wages has partnered with Hope for Life to support the organization’s Rehabilitative Program which equips children with the necessary skills, social support, and resiliency to transition out of homelessness and break the cycle of poverty. During their time in the program, each child’s basic needs are met in full including a safe home, food, clothing, medical care, spiritual discipleship, and education. A social worker works with each child to help locate any relatives they have and undergo the process of family reconciliation. Teachers and tutors ensure each child is receiving the attention and skills they need to be able to flourish. In addition, counselors help each child process the trauma of their past and come to believe that they are valuable and loved.

Our collective impact

Children Enrolled in Traditional or Vocational School

% of Successful Reintegrations

Children Served Through Rehabilitative Program

Meet Obed

Experiencing extreme poverty on a chronic basis, Obed frequently stole food to help feed his family until he was eventually caught and arrested. Following overcrowding at the government institution, he was referred to Hope for Life in 2016. Since then, Obed has been part of our Rehabilitation Program where he continues to work on his healing journey and reconnect with family. According to his therapist, “when I first met him, he wouldn’t talk to me, because he was really shy. One day, I was sitting in the playroom, and he came in and sat next to me. He began to tell me about his dream of becoming the best soccer player in Rwanda. He also told me how much he loved gymnastics. From then on, every day at 2 PM he and I walk down to the soccer field where he shows me new moves he’s working on. He has become very friendly with everyone.”

Thank you for making this possible!

Our movement is grassroots, to us that not only means the work on the ground is led by local leaders with the support of the community, but it also means that we raise the funds for our projects through everyday donors just like you. In addition to all the donors that gave $25, $100, or $250 and the campaigners that ran a race or donated their birthday to raise funds, we also want to thank our generous business, school, and faith sponsors who believed in our work and joined the movement.

If you want to support future projects like this you can make a donation to our children’s education fund.

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One Day's Wages is a grassroots movement of people, stories, and actions to alleviate extreme global poverty

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