STREET CHILDREN: The Durban Declaration - a call to action from the Street Child World Cup

In March 2010, street children aged 14-16 from various continents participated in the inaugural Street Child World Cup held in Durban, South Africa. It included a youth participation conference at which they discussed their experiences and rights. The result was the Durban Declaration, which distils the key points they raised.

The main issue raised was street children’s right to be heard. They should be listened to in order for us to:

• understand why they have left homes, and how they can be enabled to return; 
• understand when they are abused so they can be protected from violence;
• understand the barriers they experience in accessing services, so that they can exercise their right to education and healthcare.

The Durban Declaration will be launched in each participating Street Child World Cup country and distributed at the UN Human Rights Day on Street Children in March 2011.  The organisers of the Street Child World Cup, Amos Trust, are also encouraging supporters to send the Durban Declaration to their MPs to send to the Department for International Development.

To read the Durban Declaration and implications for government and civil society, click here: http://www.crin.org/violence/search/closeup.asp?infoid=23590 

To view a video from street children in the Philippines, voicing the Durban Declaration, click here: http://streetchildworldcup.org/ 

pdf: http://www.crin.org/docs/The Durban Declaration to download.pdf