Failing the forgotten : intervention programs for street children in Yogyakarta Indonesia

This study focuses on the implementation of national intervention programs for street children in the province of Yogyakarta, Indonesia. A two-fold research methodology was employed, a combination of analyzing the pertinent documentation relating to policy and intervention programs along with interviews of key informants from government offices and non-governmental institutions. The current programs fail to address the root causes of the economic, political, and social barriers encountered by street children. National policies and programs are not intertwined with efforts of empowerment at the provincial and regional levels. To compound these deficiencies, adaptive strategies incorporating local culture, conditions, and needs are also absent in the planning and implementation of official programs. Alternative efforts are required to rectify the inadequacies endemic to current approaches for assisting street children. A number of recommendations are presented in this study, which take into consideration the complex problems presented by existing programs and suggest a rethinking and a redesign of contemporary methodologies in Indonesia