City told to improve its shelter program

City told to improve its shelter program

JAKARTA (JP): An activist said on Tuesday that the city
administration's street children sheltered housing program had
failed and suggested it invited nongovernmental organizations
(NGOs) to take part in the project.

Head of the Indonesian Child Welfare Foundation's child
information division, Andri Yoga Utami, pointed out that the
failure of the administration to carry out the program was due to
improper planning and lack of qualified human resources.

Andri said the now defunct ministry of social affairs managed
its shelters in cooperation with capable NGOs more successfully.

"Unlike the ministry, the administration hasn't involved NGOs
to help them with the implementation phases from planning to
monitoring," she said.

Andri also urged the administration to improve its approach to
managing the program, which will be under its authority in line
with regional autonomy.

The sheltered housing program, which was launched in cities
across the country a few years ago, was designed to provide
nonformal education and vocational training to help street
children to survive life on the street.

"The administration's shelters are almost completely
ineffective because they only feed street children, and fail to
fulfill the program's educational mission," Andri said.

In Jakarta, there are at least 55 NGOs taking part in the
defunct ministry's shelter program. Some 4,000 street children
are currently being helped by the program at a cost of a yearly
Rp 4,214 billion allocated from the State Budget.

According to research by the foundation, Jakarta is currently
home to some 11,000 street children under 16 years old, who sell
candy and newspapers, shine shoes and beg for money to make a
living.

Jakarta's street children hang around 312 spots in the city,
particularly on major streets and in bus terminals and shopping
centers.

Many children gather at these places until late into the
night.

The foundation says that the children are subject to security
raids, sexual abuse and traffic accidents.

Research conducted jointly by the ministry of social affairs
and Atma Jaya University in 1999 shows that street children
decide to live and work on the streets mainly to support their
families and finance their own education.

Some of them are also on the streets to avoid abuse by their
parents.

At a plenary session on Monday, Governor Sutiyoso told the
City Council that his office would continue with the sheltered
housing program to protect and foster street children through
social guidance and vocational training.

Waluyo of the city's Social Agency said on Tuesday that his
office was having difficulty introducing the children to the
administration's fostering programs and shelters.

"When we are on the streets, the street children always avoid
officials, thinking that they will be captured," Waluyo said.
(06)