Homeless Street Boys in Nepal: Their Demography and Lifestyle

Summary

This article is published in the Journal of Comparative Family Studies. The authors have made a version available to read online.

Homeless children live and work independently of their families on the streets in many cities of the developing world. A survey was undertaken to compare the family backgrounds and current lifestyles of 329 six to seventeen year old Nepali boys is contrasting environments. A representative sample of 130 homeless boys is compared with three other groups of 54 rural, 62 urban squatter and 83 urban privileged school – children. Structured questionnaires and interviews revealed considerable variation in the family background of the homeless and control populations. Homeless children belong to a variety of caste and ethnic backgrounds, with 49% of individuals being high caste. Data on family structure showed that 52% of homeless boys had both parents at home,23% had step-parents, and only 8% were parent-less. In contrast, very few rural and urban controls (0-2%) had step-parents. For the homeless, family structure, particularly the presence of step-parents, influenced the age of first leaving home, reasons given for migration, and frequencies of home visits. The majority of homeless children visited their families at least once a year. Success on the streets, as indicated by daily earnings, is variable and influenced both by age and income-generating activity. The lifestyles and relationships of homeless boys are discussed.