Beirut, a very special bus roams the city, bringing joy and education to children working on the streets.
In Lebanon, more than two third of refugees live under the poverty line with limited access to employment, forcing them to send their children out to work to make ends meet.
Fun Bus” is a UNHCR and EU funded initiative implemented by the Makhzoumi Foundation, a Lebanese NGO, and aims at reducing the working hours of street children in Lebanon – most of whom are Syrian refugees.selling goods to help their impoverished families – by having them a few hours a week on board of a bus that offers them recreational and educational activities.
The initiative aims to ultimately take children out of work and enrol them in schools. So far, 150 children have left the street through the program. Still, for many leaving the bus means they are going back to the street to work.
The “Fun Bus “remains the only place where they get to be children again. ~ UNHCR