BY JOACKIM KULE MUHESI
Leaders in Kasese District have revealed that they are finding it hard to forge ways of how they can dissolve street children from the streets of Kasese town.
The leaders argue that they are perturbed by the number of young people who are leaving their homes for the streets in the urban centre without clear reasons.
They raised their concerns today during a stakeholders’ engagement meeting that was organized by the Avvento Media, a charitable organization under the Seventh Day Adventist Church which supports the rehabilitation processes to the children living on streets in Uganda.
The meeting which attracted political leaders, civil servants and civil society organizations was held at the Central Division Council Hall in Kasese town. It was aimed at discussing and laying out some strategies of how to overcome the challenge.
Mr. Wilson Lhughabwe, the Kasese Municipal Principal Community Development Officer, says they are concerned because it is only Kasese town that is accommodating street children in Western region.
According to Lhughabwe, the escalating number of street children does not only worry them but also threatens the development of the town because they scare some tourists and business operators.
The Kasese Municipal Deputy Town Clerk, Mr. Zedekiya Kambasu Kayiri says he is concerned that the actual number of street kids is not known while the origin of some of them is not clearly identified.
The Kasese District Senior Probation and Welfare Officer, Mr. Faisal Bagumira Kirarira says the district leadership is also concerned about the rate at which children drop out of schools.
Bagumira indicated that when they carried out a survey from the government grant-aided schools, they discovered that out of the 94% of the pupils’ enrolment in primary one, only 63% reach primary five while 32% complete primary seven.
The Kasese Resident District Commissioner, Lt. Joe Walusimbi noted that the street boys and girls were compromisingsecurity of the area.
He called for joint efforts among all the stakeholders in ensuring that the street children are reunited with their family members.
However, the leaders welcomed the initiatives of having some of the challenges resolved by Avvento Media that has come to partner with them to put in place measures of rehabilitating the roaming number of children.
Ms Grace Batamuliza, the Director for Avvento Media, said that with their project codenamed, “Special Friends for Street Children,” they would workwith the leaders to identify where those children come from and what forces them to leave their homes for streets so that they are sensitized about the need to go back to their homes and their respective schools.
ENDS