The Child in Peru
According to UNICEF, it is estimated that 170,000,000 Latin Americans are living in conditions of absolute poverty. In Peru, 14% of the population is in extreme poverty or indigence, equivalent to 3.5 million inhabitants, of which 2 million are children and adolescents.
Peru is a young country, with 30% being children and 14% being adolescents (INEI - 1993). It is estimated that in Lima alone, approximately 1500 to 2000 children and adolescents, aged between 6 and 17, are living on the streets.
This phenomenon is a consequence of the family crisis we are going through, the increase in dysfunctional families, extreme poverty, violence, and child abuse originating within the family unit, migration to Lima leading to overcrowding of members of one or several families in precarious houses without basic services, and the crisis of values that our society is experiencing. All of this results in a child running away from home every day and seeking refuge on the streets.
These children sleep wherever they can (riverbanks, public squares, abandoned houses) and form groups that move around various areas of the city. In most cases, these children engage in illicit activities such as theft or deception. Dirty, ragged, with very poor health, they are mostly dedicated to consuming drugs such as basic cocaine paste or inhaling solvents such as terokal, exposing themselves to dependency and subsequently severe brain damage.
Unfortunately, the Peruvian government does not have the resources to solve the problem of juvenile delinquency.
CIMA relies entirely on the support of people like you. To learn more about our Home and how to join our family, please visit the "Help Us Help" link.
At the CIMA home, we work dedicatedly and efficiently, but we need to ask for donations to remain operational. Help us help today when the children need it and they will be grateful.
Without the help of transparent and serious organizations like CIMA, these children would have no hope. CIMA was founded on the principle of giving hope to children and adolescents, without which they would be abandoned on the streets facing terrible consequences. CIMA is hope for these children and for Peru.