[originaltext] About 25 million children in developing countries have no home

About 25 million children in developing countries have no homes. So they live on city streets. Another 75 million children live at home but work on the streets. United Nations Children’s Fund says most of these children do not receive education or health care. The private organization known as "Child Hope U.S.A." is trying to do something to help these children. The group has many goals. Child Hope U.S.A. wants to halt the spread of AIDS and the use of illegal drugs among children. It wants to protect young girls from being mistreated sexually. It wants to teach children how to protect themselves, how to survive conditions on the streets and how to feel good about them. Child Hope U.S.A. is trying to establish educational programs for the children. It is working with local groups to get their help in protecting the rights of street children. And, it is trying to make international development groups more informed about street children. Some children begin living on the streets when they are five years old or younger. Four-year-olds can be found selling goods on the street comer or begging for food and money. Some of these children have lost their families because of wars or natural disasters, such as earthquakes and floods. Some are helping their families earn enough money to survive. Studies show that more than one million children live and work on the streets in the Philippines. Seven million children live on the streets in Brazil. About 250 thousand children live on the streets in Mexico. About ten million Mexican children work on the streets. Child Hope U.S.A. works closely with international children’s groups, government agencies and other national and local groups. It has offices in Brazil, Guatemala, the Philippines, Britain, Canada and the United States. Child Hope U,S.A. also works to improve child labor laws. In 1992, Pakistan approved new laws to control child labor. The laws make it illegal for companies to lend money to families and let children repay the loan by working in factories. Yet, about eight million children still are working in Pakistan to repay loans. We will talk more about the problems of children in developing countries next week.