"The police don't care.... they beat you anyway."

Joseph has lived on the streets since he was ten. He caught the bus from his small rural home town and arrived in Nairobi city centre:

“Nothing had prepared me for being on the streets in Nairobi; I was scared and confused. I wanted to go home to my mother but nobody would give me the bus fare so I could go home.”

With no other option, Joseph began living as a street child. He has had no contact with his mother for over thirteen years.

Joseph used to sniff glue and steal but has now stopped and is positive about his future. He recently started to share a room with other boys from the street, many of whom use glue and commit street robberies. Sometimes, after a street crime has been committed, the police come to the room and beat anyone who happens to be there:

“This happens many times. The police don’t care if it was you that did the street robbery or not. They beat you anyway.”

Joseph wants a room of his own and to train as a mechanic. He has been elected Vice-Chair of a street youth association¹ and sees this as an opportunity to improve both his life and that of other children and young people on the streets. Through coming together and becoming organised, life for association members can improve.

Railway Children supports Undugu Society Kenya with the street youth association’s initiative. Alongside the association support, education and employment opportunities are also offered, all key in helping children move away from street life.

Joseph sees challenges ahead:

“Many of the members of the association use glue and this is a problem.”

Joseph is focusing on mobilising their more motivated members so their association can move forward. He sees a very important role for the group in identifying children who are new to the streets in Nairobi so they can refer these children to Undugu Society. In looking out for his peers, Joseph hopes the early intervention of his group will result in more children leaving the streets to be reintegrated with their family. Where this is not possible, they will be placed safely in Undugu Society’s short-term residential centre until a more permanent solution can be found.

“It is important to help children who come to the streets. The streets are not a safe place for children.”

If Joseph had received this support when he first arrived on the streets in Nairobi, he could have returned home to his mother and avoided becoming a street child.

Joseph was interviewed by Emilie Smeaton, Railway Children’s Research and Strategy Manager.