Being eleven, and being a Zimbabwean street kid: Mandla Mpofu’s story
Today’s mailing to our subscribers tells the story of Mandla Mpofu (not his real name). He is an eleven year old street kid living rough in Bulawayo. This is an extract of his story of survival:
How does he survive on the streets? By prowling the rubbish bins in the city centre, Mandla replies. And, giving the term “streetwise” a new dimension, the eleven year old explains that he finds “more, better and fresh pickings” in the bins outside the small restaurants than the big takeaways, like Chicken Inn. Of the latter he says, “I can see more customers going to these places, but I don’t know where they put their leftovers. Their bins are always tidy.” Ruefully he suggests that the larger restaurants and hotels deliberately keep their rubbish bins clean and empty in order to discourage street kids like himself, some of whom harass their clients with their constant begging. Lodges in the city centre lock the bins inside their premises for the same reason.
Read the full article on our website here. Subscribe to our mailing list to receive our articles by email.
