Children of Brazil

Children of Brazil

According to many studies, Brazil leads the world in child poverty rates as well as cases of child slavery and malnutrition. Unfortunately the sad reality is that poor children around the world often find themselves in similar situations, just fighting to stay alive everyday. Although Brazil is an important industrial power with one of the strongest economies in Latin America, poverty is still widespread. According to some estimates, upwards of 50% of the population is living on slightly less than US $2.00 per person per day. Brazil is second only to South Africa in the world ranking of income inequality and poverty rates. Approximately 21% of the total population lives in rural areas, and the country has the largest rural poor population in the western hemisphere. In some ways, rural families are more disadvantaged than poor people who live in urban areas. While education and health facilities are more readily accessible to urban than to rural populations, the water supply and sewage systems are generally inadequate in rural areas. With very limited access to technology,families of Brazilian rural communities struggle to supplement farming incomes through salaried labor. The most vulnerable groups among Brazil's rural poor people are women, young people and ethnic minorities. Often, their husbands are forced to migrate to other parts of the country in search of seasonal work, women are left with responsibility for running the family farm as well as the household. In Brazil, there are many forms of discrimination against women that often aggravate poverty in these households such as domestic abuse. In addition to farming, women’s daily household chores often include the critical need to fetch water in addition to all their other responsibilities. As a result of these difficult conditions, child labor becomes used as a another source of family income, as a result child labor is still commonly used among poor households in Brazil. In the poverty zones, especially the North-East, almost 40 per cent of all children between the ages of 10 and 14 work to supplement family incomes. Poverty is also closely related to difficult climatic conditions. Lack of access to formal education and skills training is another major cause of rural poverty. Rural poor have limited access to basic and social infrastructure, and to appropriate technologies and markets, and as a result they have no opportunity to capitalize on farm production or other income-generating enterprises.

STREET CHILDREN OF BRAZIL
Street children are known to receive beatings from the police
or members of the public and also can face imprisonment,
malnutrition, disease and AIDS.
Brazil is the fifth largest country in the world with a population
of approximately 190 million people and still growing. The disparity between the rich and the poor in Brazilian society is one of the largest in the world. The richest 1% of Brazil's population control 50% of its income. Whereas the poorest 50% of society live on just 10% of the country's wealth. Street children have become an urban problem which has roots in rural and the displacement of large numbers of people from the land.

References:
http://www.childreninhunger.org.uk
http://gbgm-umc.org/
http://pangaea.org/street_children/latin/prost.htm
http://volunteerbrazil.com/streetkidsproject.html
http://www.children.org/
http://gvnet.com/streetchildren/Brazil.htm

Getting involved, what can you do?

For less than $20 dollars, you can make a huge difference in the lives of the children of Arcozelo. This is also a great project for a Sunday school class or for teens that want to get involved. Please make sure to include a return address so you can have some pictures of the children sent to you, as well as the vegetable gardens.

What you will need:

2 USPS Flat Rate Priority Mail Envelopes

Packets of vegetable seeds, for example: tomato, lettuce, squash, pumkin, cantaloupe, turnips, greenbeans, really anything.

Lipton Iced Tea TO GO packets or Crystal Light, in all flavors, children sell these for a profit to earn some money.

If there is room in the envelope, try to fit some crayons, colored pencils, yo-yos or some small toy such as a toy car or candy. This means so much to the children, who have no toys.

Whatever you can fit in the priority mail envelope, seal tightly. After it is sealed, place it in the second envelope and close. Do not tape the outside of the envelope or they will not mail it from the post office.

Mail it to the following:

Children of Arcozelo- c/o DINA

Estrada da Cachoeir 1700

Pati Do Alferes ARCOZELO

R.J BRAZIL 26950-000

Thank you for taking the time to educate yourself. You can make a difference in the world by giving back, and remember,
everything you give to others comes back to you multiplied. These kids need us, even the smallest bit of help makes a world of difference in the lives of these children.