Nobody's Children.(street children in Nairobi)(Brief Article)

On any given night, at the corner of Market and Loita in downtown Nairobi, one or two dozen children curl up on the sidewalk. If no VIPs are visiting town, the police might let them stay. At dawn the shopkeepers come and they scamper to their feet, a small army of hungry, bleary-eyed kids in rags, dying for a fix. The cobblers who feed their addiction out of thick cans of glue won't come until 8, which leaves the children with two hours of hell to face.

No one's sure how many street children live in Nairobi, but their numbers are increasing exponentially. By city council estimates there were roughly 60,000 four years ago; now social workers speak of 200,000--all between the ages of 1 and 18. Most are believed to be AIDS orphans or victims of Kenya's unrelenting economic decline, cast out by parents no longer able to feed them. Once in the city, they survive on petty crime and odd jobs: they pick pockets, stalk and attack pedestrians, steal mobile phones, look after parked cars or run drugs. "You'll find them in dumping sites," says Rachel Awala, an administrator with Kenyan NGO Child-life. "You find them living like no human being should."

George Kimani is less dramatic: "You don't mind," says the 10-year-old with a snort. George's mother was still alive last time he checked, but his father died two years ago, leaving a family of seven without an income. George was ordered to go. He drifted toward the city center, attracted by the offices and ...