Democratic Republic of the Congo: Hope for the future

UNICEF International

Mabati Bageteka, 15, dreams of playing music in church. The congregation would sing religious songs while he accompanied them on a guitar. He also dreams of returning home. Mabati can't go home at the moment because the last time Mabati went home to his village in Masisi Province, he was forced to join an armed group - for the second time. This time, those looking after Mabati are taking no chances.

Since his arrival in Goma three months ago, he's been living in a foster family. UNICEF finds foster families for children like Mabati to help former child soldiers reintegrate back into society. Being a child soldier is one of the many forms of child labour in the world. Once they have escaped, children like Mabati need a safe place with families who will protect and care for them until it is safe to return home without the risk of being re-recruited.

"Many of the boys we have taken in are traumatised," says Silas Majembere, a foster parent who looks after Mabati. "I know they have seen and committed very bad things so I try to give them moral support and guide them back to normal life."

Groups of rebels force children to fight for them as soldiers. Many who escape are found by the armed group within days and forced to rejoin the forces.

"I had been back with my family just four days," explained Mabati. "My parents had moved to an IDP camp near Rutshuru and then the CNDP came into the camp and told me that if I escape again, they will kill me."

Mabati stayed with the armed group for two weeks before escaping again after he spotted a patrol of soldiers from the UN's peacekeeping force passing nearby. Their child protection unit took him in and transferred him back to Goma.

To help prevent recruitment, UNICEF has also helped set up community alert mechanisms which act as a communication tree in the community. Health workers, social workers, retired military and child protection experts monitor the situation and act as soon as there are reports of forced recruitment. Local partner organisations, that have contacts with the armed groups, get in touch with them and demand the release of the child. Radio messages are also broadcast on local stations, warning parents to be on guard, and advising children to not stray too far from home or be alone.

For now Mabati will stay with his foster family, safe from the horrors of being a child soldier, and dreaming of the day when he can return home.

Nepal: Helping to Prevent Child Labour

Biratnagar, Nepal, April 2009
UNICEF International

"I want to study hard and become a renowned person in society," says eleven-year-old Manisha Kandel. She dreams of being a teacher and helping other children like herself towards a better education.

At present this dream is less achievable than it should be because of the difficult economic circumstances of her family. For over a year, Manisha has been living away from her family because they could not afford to keep her.

Manisha has been working in a Guest House in Pokhara in the western district of Nepal. Her day starts with mopping floors, serving tea to the visitors and washing dishes. She calls her employer "mummy" and when she is free, Manisha helps her with other jobs. For all this she is paid with food and clothes only. She says, "I don't get money but my employers give me new clothes and slippers once a year."

Various laws have been framed to prevent child labour in Nepal but solving the problem still remains a big challenge. The laws are only written documents and need to be accompanied with action to make them effective. To protect children like Manisha against child labour, UNICEF and its partners have been offering protective services through Contact Centres for Working Children in city areas where child labour is found to be high.

The Contact Centres offer education to working children aged 10-14 years who have so far missed out on any schooling because they have been working instead. For three years they use a special intense course to try to catch the children up to an adequate level of education and also teach valuable life skills that they may have missed out on due to spending so much time away from home.

"Child labour is everywhere but it is often invisible, working as domestic servants in homes and labouring at the stone quarries and sand mines," says Ms. Pandev, a teacher at one of the centres. "The Contact Centre gives a platform for these children to acquire education and professional skills to change their lives."

Despite all the hardships and struggles, little Manisha is still considered lucky because she is getting a chance at education. Many other child labourers are still deprived of this opportunity because their employers feel that having the children at work is more important than preparing them for their futures.

"I am fortunate that my employers understand the importance of education and allowed me to join the Contact Centre," says Manisha. "I come here everyday for two hours and I enjoy coming here because I have friends with whom I can share my joys and sorrows."