By Regina Inkum (Level 300 Ghana Institute of Journalism)
The street is filled with them; the innocent and homeless children, in their tattered and dirty clothes on the street of Accra. Some beg for money while others engage in menial jobs like selling cotton buds and wiping off car windscreens and tissue papers to survive. Streetism exposes the harsh realities faced by countless young individuals who find themselves abandoned and forced into life on the edge of society.
It is so sad seeing them scrawny like they are suffering from certain illnesses. Poverty, irresponsible parenting, domestic violence, physical and sexual abuse, family related problems, rural-urban migration and broken homes are some of the basic factors contributing to the rise of streetism in the country. It is a crying shame seeing how most people pretend to give deaf ears and blind eyes to these little ones. Most of these children are left with no choice than to make the street a place of shelter.
The term streetism is used to describe children who live and work on the streets due to a lack of family ties, where their guardians or parents use them to support the household financially, through various activities on the streets. Life on the streets is filled with a lot of challenges that hit these children every day.
The exposure to the harsh environmental conditions, ravenous, the daily threats of prose, and the emotional and physical abuse make them prostitutes, rapists, drug addicts, and armed robbers. These children seem to be okay on the streets, yet their lives may not get any better because they lack education, healthcare, security and basic necessities of life.
Again, some of these children suffer from social anxiety, trauma, and depression which may lead to substance abuse and a suiciding.
Furthermore, most of these street children have evolved adaptive strategies like forming small communities which they refer to as “street families,” where they constantly keep in touch for support and security for themselves. Making friends with some of the traders and being alluring in informal activities like doing menial jobs, stealing, and begging on the street are some of their unique ways of survival.
According to Amina, a fourteen-year-old girl in an interview said, they are often deceived and threatened by men to have sexual intercourse with them in exchange for food and money.
Over the years, the government has given assurances of taking these children out of the streets, yet the number of children on the streets of major cities in Ghana keeps growing at an alarming rate. It is about time the government walk the talk on streetism, so the government should tighten its regulations on streetism. With this, there would be a reduction in crime wave, making society a safe place for everyone.
The government needs to lace up with some non-governmental organizations to provide some basic necessities like shelter, and training to emancipate street children. The government agencies in the country need to raise awareness of the day-to-day struggles these children face. Through this, the level of both physical and emotional abuse at bus stations, and markets can be reduced. In addition, government agencies should implement policies that will look out for street children.
Paying attention to the root causes and the challenges these children face on the streets will create a world where no one would be left behind. The country can make a difference by making provisions for these vulnerable individuals with the chance to unlock their full potential and get a brighter future. Hence, streetism can be a history in the country rather than an ongoing reality.
