1point5million

My Photo scholarship 2011 entry

WORLDWIDE | Sunday, 6 November 2011 | Views [3073]

The inhospitable and overcrowded slums around Manila are symbolic of modern day poverty, where there are illegal squatter camps everywhere, deteriorating government housing projects, as well as many people engaged in illegal jobs and activities. Recent government initiatives on eradicating slums and squatter camps have had very little impact.

Child labour is common in The Philippines. More than 4 million children work as fisherman, hunters, farmers, factory workers, street vendors, and most commonly as scavengers; collecting recyclable materials and scraps to exchange for cash. Most of these children are male, aged between 10 and 17 years old. Quite often they are the primary income earners for their families, as unemployment is very high. The conditions in which some of these children work are very hazardous. Heavy lifting, physical hazards, and work related injuries are common.

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More than 70,000 families live along the edges of the nearly 30 waterways in Metro Manila. The tin and wood dwellings are tightly packed in, sometimes 3 stories high, with no sanitation and very little natural light.

Garbage collects in the waterways and clogs its drainage system, so that any slight downpour or typhoon causes flooding in many communities. Metro Manila also has a combined septic and storm-water system so that when it floods, human waste is expelled onto the streets.

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1point5million

My Photo scholarship 2011 entry

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