Project report
Social Risks and Protection Gaps Among Children Working on the Streets in Ho Chi Minh City Vietnam
Vu HV, Le NT ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This study examined street-working children in Ho Chi Minh City, finding that 150 children aged 5–17 years work to support their families, with most having dropped out of school and working seven days a week. Children faced multiple protection risks including stigma, physical attack, and sexual abuse, though formal support services were rarely available. The research identifies that effective solutions require coordinated child protection, school support, family livelihood assistance, and consistent outreach to reach these vulnerable children.
Key points
- 59.7% of street-working children had dropped out of school
- 62.7% worked seven days per week, with 69.7% of earners contributing income to family survival
- Protection exposures reported: 26.7% stigma/discrimination, 20.7% physical attack, 7.3% inappropriate touching, 2.7% forced sex
- Over 80% had never participated in child-labour-prevention activities and 93.5% did not know of local programmes
- Street work is embedded in household-street economy shaped by precarious housing, fragile schooling, and informal urban demand
Limitations
This is a cross-sectional descriptive study with no comparison group and no evaluation of interventions, so it cannot establish causation or assess what interventions would be effective. The study is limited to Ho Chi Minh City and may not represent street-working children in other Vietnamese contexts or regions.
Abstract
Abstract Street-working children occupy a paradoxical position in rapidly urbanising economies: they are legally too vulnerable to be treated as ordinary workers, yet often too poor to withdraw from work without a viable survival alternative. This study examined social risks and protection gaps affecting street-working children. A mixed-methods field study was conducted in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, in May 2024. It included a questionnaire survey of 150 children aged 5–17 years, 40 in-depth interviews, six focus-group discussions, and five case studies. Findings show that street work is embedded in a household-street economy shaped by precarious housing, fragile schooling, informal urban demand, and family reliance on children's earnings. Among surveyed children, 59.7% had dropped out of school, 62.7% worked seven days per week, and 69.7% of cash earners used their income to support family needs. Reported protection-relevant exposures included stigma or discrimination (26.7%), physical attack (20.7%), inappropriate touching (7.3%), and forced unwanted sex (2.7%). Formal prevention contact was limited: more than 80% had never participated in several child-labour-prevention activities, and 93.5% did not know of local programmes. Drawing on child-labour, street-situation, and rights and service-access scholarship, effective exit pathways require coordinated child protection, school continuity, family livelihood support, and sustained outreach.