Assessment of Street Children Reintegration on Security in Kicukiro District, Rwanda

Abstract

Security challenges are one of the major social problems confronting not only Kicukiro District or Rwanda in general, but most of the third world countries and some other parts of the world. The quest to find why and how the number of street children is increasing and how it affects the level of security prompted the researcher to conduct this study. In the course of the research, qualitative and quantitative research techniques were adopted. Focus group discussion and key informant interviews were the methods through which data was gathered. The data was presented in the form of diagrams substantiated with interpretation of the data. Once on the streets, children face infinite challenges, among them violence perpetuated by older boys, members of the public and the police. Street children are known to form gangs which pose a security threat to the city of Kigali hence affecting the economy, tourism, foreign investment and lower productivity of the work-force. Although they are relatively harmless as young children, as they grow into adults they are likely to constitute a major source of crime. Therefore, there is need to find out how the insecurity they pose is likely to affect businesses, property, and also the community. In addition, it is also important to understand the factors that influence street children to commit criminal activities in Kigali. This study submits that street children pose security threat not only while on the street but also after they have been reunited with families and reintegrated community. Hence, there should be a more concerted effort to monitor their behavior after the reintegration by all stakeholders.