Livelihood Development Program
Since one of the major reasons for children going to streets is to earn income for the family. It is important that the community-based program has strong livelihood program with loan assistance component or social credit. Usually these are small entrepreneurial activities such as food vending, rug making, candle making, garment sewing, and selling of dry good etc.
KAIBIGAN’s Livelihood Development program has three components: skills training, self-help group and social enterprising. Skills training as one of the LDP’s components is aimed at providing and/enhancing the skills of parents and older children for gainful employment. All the trainings are based from the result of the survey of the marketable skills conducted to the community. Self help group on the other hand is the ‘enhanced’ version of ‘loan assistance’/’social credit’. The concept of self-help group is an informal association of poor persons/weaker sections in community with common objective of working together for their economic and social development and also for overall area development. KAIBIGAN see this as venue for ‘micro-finance’ in groups, after parents underwent series of skills training. Social enterprising as another component of LDP is aimed at creating opportunities for the parents/children/youth through KAIBIGAN owned small social enterprising ventures. Although the primary purpose of livelihood component is a community-based program is income augmentation, it also serves as a laboratory for learning. It is the time when parent and youth group members can demonstrate the concepts of group cohesiveness, mutual support and cooperation, trust and resolution of conflict, planning and problem solving. |