Some 50,000 children live on the streets of St. Petersburg

A contemporary survey of their backgrounds

The first survey report on the profile of the street children of St. Petersburg is about to be completed. The material for this report was collected during September 2000, and the report itself is in the process of preparation by sociologists at the University of St. Petersburg and by some 30 researchers at various other universities. The final report will be published in both Russian and English towards the end of the year.

The survey was conducted as part of a three-year ILO project, which deals with the street children of St. Petersburg. The aim of the project is to find ways in which to remove the causes which drive these children on to the streets in the first place, and which could be used for the prevention of the problem. The project is being funded by Finland, whilst the trade union federation of St. Petersburg and the Leningrad region is involved in conducting the project. Alexei Y. Boukharov has been engaged as the project coordinator.

- The population of St. Petersburg is approximately 4.7 million
- Some 1.5 million are members of trade unions
- There are 40,000 to 50,000 children who live and/or work on the streets
- 1,000 children, aged between 5 and 13, were interviewed
- 50 employers from various sectors (official employers and 'gangs') were interviewed
- The object of the interviews was to discover the underlying reasons for the problem of the street children and thus the means for rectifying the situation

Some facts revealed by the survey

- 10, 000 - 16,000 children actually live rough on the streets
- Between 50 % and 70 % of the street children are below 13 years of age
- The phenomenon of the street children is regarded, by two thirds of experts on the subject, as the most serious social problem of the St. Petersburg region
- Some 10 % to 30 % of the children who live on the streets are involved in criminal activities (the sex industry, stolen goods, drugs)
- There are some 2,000 child prostitutes
- The working street children wash cars, sell papers, unload goods deliveries, undertake seasonal work (fruit and vegetable picking for example), some 1 % work either as slaves or under the threat of physical violence
- The children are paid either in cash, food or drugs
- There is virtually no legislation to prevent the use of child labour, although child prostitution is a crime and for this reason the children involved have to pay protection money
- Some 300 NGOs are involved in various projects towards helping the street children (several Finnish organisations, for example, provide assistance)

For further information please contact
Alexei Y. Boukharoy, Project Coordinator (languages: English and Russian)
E-mail: ipec-spb@spb.cityline.ru