00:00They are everywhere.
00:07They drift through the traffic and the crowds.
00:10Bottles of glue wedged firmly in their mouths.
00:14They knock on our car windows and make a gesture signalling they're hungry.
00:19But what do we really know about them?
00:21And does society even cast them a second glance to see how they can be helped?
00:27It is 4.30am in Nairobi, and we set out on a journey to catch up with Nairobi street children.
00:34It took us no time to find them.
00:36Here, along Nairobi's Biashara Street, we see them huddled together, dead asleep.
00:44And as we capture their plight on camera, we bump into this disabled woman struggling to live.
00:50Our efforts to talk to her were futile, but seeing her walk away in this condition
00:55brought to life the challenges street families are forced to endure day in, day out.
01:02Around the corner, we meet John Keryuki.
01:04He tells me he's in a hurry to sell recyclable materials to make a living, and he has to do so before daybreak.
01:11Any delay could see him run into trouble with the city county officers.
01:15When we pick up these plastic bottles, cartons, and bottles of alcohol,
01:21like Minkins and Moonwalker, they beat us up and say we're stealing from Nairobi.
01:27And as daylight breaks on this chilly morning,
01:31our journey to catch up with more street families in the city continues.
01:35Here in Eastleigh, we find these young boys.
01:39They spend the night on this cold, dirty hard pavement.
01:43Many of them have suffered from malnutrition, lack of sleep,
01:46and bear the pain from their continued exposure to the cold and rain.
01:50Ignored, pitied, and feared in Ecolmesha, these kids find the street as the place to end their misery.
01:57But even in the street, they are not safe.
01:59They are more vulnerable, and they find it harsh.
02:02They're subjected to a whole range of violence, abuse, and deprivation.
02:06Many of them have tales to tell about the abuse they suffered in the hands of those they trusted the most.
02:12My mother said she was going to beat us up.
02:16I went home and brought another boy with me.
02:21That's when I found out about the abuse.
02:33Despite the harsh times, many cling to the hope that there is a better future for them.
02:39This organization based in Eastleigh's Fifth Street offers them basic education and food.
02:44But Moses Gisharu, a social worker here, tells me the kids still prefer heading back to the streets regularly.
02:50They tend to have that urge to go back to drugs, because there in our building, they don't take drugs there.
02:58Another reason is because there we have rules and regulations whereby they should follow.
03:06Despite the harsh surroundings, some of the street children keep nurturing their talent, hoping it will lift them out of poverty.
03:23They are those who have benefited from rehabilitation programs, including Samuel Kamau, who is now a proud father and boxing coach.
03:32I used to take drugs, but they didn't help me.
03:37I have changed a lot, and I am one of those who have changed.
03:54Samuel is one of the lucky few who have been able to find their footing in life.
03:58Deep inside this makeshift base in Eastleigh, we find a 40-year-old man, Collins Kamino, from Kakamega County, who is paralysed on one side.
04:07He tells me he travelled to Nairobi in search of treatment, but financial constraints and lack of support forced him to seek refuge in the streets.
04:29And as people like Collins battle with this condition, I just wonder how hard it will be for that mother to learn about her child in the street, in the cold and in the rain,
04:39how they try to survive with an empty stomach, and how they are exposed to danger.
04:43And even though their search for a better life remains elusive, these people have dreams and aspirations,
04:49given the chance they can be important people in the society.
04:53Abdurrahman Abdullahi, for Citizen TV.
04:58For more UN videos visit www.un.org
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