Alana

Alana is 15 years old. For most of her life, she has been invisible and has spent a lot of time flitting on and off of the streets, often through no fault of her own.

Growing up, Alana lived with her mum, Lisbeth, before her little brother, Samuel, came along when she was 10. As a single mum, Lisbeth worked hard to earn enough money to look after her children by selling sweets and caramels on the streets of La Paz and El Alto in Bolivia. The family would spend their days covering miles of the two city centres, selling their products to passers-by, always hoping there would be enough money at the end of the day to pay for their rented room for a little while longer. Having enough money was always a challenge for the family.

“One of the worst things was seeing my little brother going hungry and my mum so stressed. She used to worry so much when we didn’t sell enough to pay rent and knew we’d have to sleep on the streets.” Alana

Eventually, there just wasn’t enough money to stay in their room and the landlord evicted them. Their lives changed from just spending the days on the streets to also having to spend the nights on the streets. Each evening, Alana and her mum would search for the safest place they could find to sleep peacefully, before spending the night taking turns to keep watch while Samuel slept, just to ensure that they could keep out of danger as much as possible while it was dark.

“The cold on the streets was the worst thing – it makes you feel like all your insides are frozen. You cover yourself with newspaper and blankets if you can find them, but your bones still ache from the chill. I was always so afraid of the dangers of sleeping there.” Alana

In 2018 however, Alana came into contact with Toybox’s partner in Bolivia, Alalay who became aware that the family didn’t have their official documents when Samuel had an accident and was refused care at the hospital because he didn’t have his birth certificate.

“Before I met Alalay and start taking part in projects, I felt so sad that we didn’t have any way to pay for our identity documents, or anyone to help us understand the process. Life was so complicated because no one took us seriously or cared about us which made me feel really frustrated. I couldn’t take part in any activities or get healthcare when I needed it. I even had to miss out on school because I didn’t have my birth certificate.”

Thankfully, Alalay was able to support Alana, Lisbeth and Samuel in getting their birth certificates – even with an added complication of Alana’s ID number being linked to another person as well.

Now, Alana is a happy and charismatic teenager who takes an active role in a Youth Leadership network, set up by Alalay. She is thrilled to finally officially exist.

“Now, I feel so happy to have my identity documents because more doors will be open for me and I won’t have as many obstacles to navigate in order to access education, healthcare or other basic services. I’m so happy that my whole family will now find it easier to access all sorts of things in life. I want to do so many things now I can – the first is enrol in a course to learn English!”

The family’s perseverance means that they are now renting a room in El Alto. Although they still earn money through selling sweets, Lisbeth’s ultimate aim is to open a bank account so she can save the money that they make – she hopes this means that Alana and Samuel will never have to spend another night on the streets.

Alana loves sport, participating in activities and learning new things every day. She also loves helping other people who need it and making people laugh.

“Having my birth certificate means I’ll be able to be part of different activities. I can go to the doctor without having doors shut in my face and no one puts me to the sidelines. My mental health has also got better because before, I felt so much frustration and that the world was a horrible place – now I feel more calm.” Alana

Alana’s birth certificate has already allowed her experiences she could barely have dreamed of before she officially existed. Earlier this month, she and her football teammates travelled to Doha in Qatar to take part in the international Street Child World Cup championship, battling against 14 other teams in the hope of winning the trophy. Although Alana and her team didn't quite make it to the final, they did amazingly well and came 4th in the tournament after narrowly missing out to Colombia in the semi-finals!

Despite not winning the trophy, representing her country internationally has put Alana on cloud nine. However, she still remembers how her own mental health was impacted by her experiences and lack of official identity. This has made her determined to do what she can to prevent other children from feeling the same and she dreams of becoming a doctor and psychologist in the future.

“My biggest dream is to support street children and travel to other countries to help children who find themselves in difficult situations. For those children who aren't registered yet, I'd say try whatever you can to get your ID card or birth certificate. I know how it feels to be invisible and I would hate for other children to feel the same way.” Alana

To learn more about how you can help more children like Alana get their birth certificates, visit www.toybox.org.uk/christmas