Work with Street Children in the Philippines

work street children philippines asia volunteer abroad

  • The Project

    Volunteer and help provide safe housing, healthy food, and educational support and to street children in the Philippines. Role models are needed to mentor and teach street children and help them learn to make healthy choices, stay in school, and other guidance to brighten their bleak futures. In the Philippines, more than 250,000 children live on the streets and around 20,000 a year are imprisoned every year. Most of these children survive by begging and scavenging in dumpsites and garbage piles for plastic bottles to recycle for small amounts of money. Many street kids resort to prostitution, and are addicted to sniffing industrial glue, which is cheap and helps silence their hunger pains.

  • Why the project needs you

    Volunteers are essential for this project. The social welfare department has built a facility to house, feed and educate the children, but the ratio of staff to street children does not meet the demand. Many of the children do not get the attention and guidance that they need, and so they return to the streets. They are prone to poor health, infections and food poisoning as they scavenge for food in bins and live in unsanitary conditions. As the children get older, many turn to drugs and prostitution, so the impact of this project through the aid of volunteers can be the difference that puts them on a better path to their future.

    Project Location

    The project is located in Tacloban City, which is about 1 hour southeast of Manila by plane. Tacloban has modern city amenities and volunteers are housed in a home-stay in a small barangay (district) with a local host family that have numerous years of experience in accommodating international volunteers. In this small barangay atmosphere you will be surrounded by friendly locals and fully immersed into the community; he you will be able to witness the true nature of what it is like to live and volunteer in the Philippines.

    Outside of the local community there is still plenty to take in. The Eastern Visayas has strong history, from Spanish colonization to Japanese occupation during World War II – it's all here. Just outside of Tacloban, is the MacArthur Memorial Site, the location at which the Philippines was liberated by the American General Douglas MacArthur in the Philippines.

    Other than history, there is also the natural beauty of the region to take in; with sun swept beaches, towering hillsides, lakes and waterfalls to visit during your free time.

    People in this region of the Philippines speak the local dialect 'Waray-Waray' but also speak the national languages of Tagalog and English. Tacloban City and the entire region of the Eastern Visayas is not a common tourist destination; offering volunteers a real chance to immerse in the one-of-a-kind 'Pinoy' culture.

  • Project Facts

    • Duration: 4 - 26 weeks
    • Cost: £989 ($1731) for 4 weeks, £125 ($219) for each week thereafter
    • Requirements: age 18+
    • Location: Tacloban City, Philippines
    • Project activities: Teaching life and hygiene skills, English, homework tutoring, social education, mentoring, organizing games & sports
    • Working hours: 08:00 - 13:00, Monday - Friday
    • Project Availability: Projects begin every Monday, all year round.

  • What is included

    • Accommodation: Single or shared room in a home-stay
    • Food: 2 meals per day - Breakfast and Dinner
    • Airport pick up and drop off
    • Training: Pre-departure pack, On-site Orientation and project induction provided
    • Support: 24 hour support from on-site coordinators
    • Excursions: 2 field excursions are included in your visit. You will have a beach trip with your host family or sponsor kids and you will have a project excursion visiting various many of our projects. Staff can also help plan weekend excursions.

  • What is not included

    • Flights
    • Insurance
    • Visas

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