“I felt that my future would be on the street” Mahesh
7-year-old Mahesh had no chance of being registered at birth. He was born into a life on the streets in Kathmandu in a community which lacks even the most basic of facilities. His father worked as a daily labourer and the family struggled to make ends meet. As a result, Mahesh spent most of his time begging and scavenging for bits of scrap, which he’d later try to sell.
Working on the streets frightened Mahesh. He was regularly bitten and robbed by older children. Mahesh longed to escape the streets and go to school but being unregistered, he was not allowed.
Around three years ago, Mahesh came into contact with our partner, SathSath in Nepal and has since been attending a variety of project activities. Mahesh explains,
“When I started at the project I started realising the value of education, as it helped me write my name and understand numbers. I started to learn new things and was also able to make new friends who inspired me to study.”
Just recently, the team have managed to help Mahesh through the process of getting his birth certificate and he is now able to go to school. At seven years old, Mahesh finally has a future to look forward to. He shares,
“Before I was registered I felt that my future would be on the street. Now I have been accepted to school for study. This means I can make my future dreams come true - I want to be a police officer. If I were the President, I would like to give birth registration to all street children and give them free education.”
