Abstract:
The problem of street children is one of the challenges that many developing countries are
facing. However, the government of Rwanda has made remarkable efforts in solving this
problem. It has initiated various programs such as returning them to families, reintegrating and
rehabilitating them as well as taking them back to school. The aim of this study was to
investigate driving forces that influence children to return to street life after being reintegrated in
the families or rehabilitated. The study employed descriptive method using qualitative approach
where interview and recordings were used to collect data from two Sectors (Nyamirambo and
Kimisagara) of Nyarugenge District in Kigali city. The sample size was composed by fifty street
children who return to street life after being reintegrated or rehabilitated, selected randomly in
above-mentioned Sectors. The findings of this study show that boys (60%) were more visible to
street life than girls (40%). The study revealed that the main factors that induce to return to street
after reintegration include poverty by 30%, conflicts and parental break up (28%) and children
preferences (26%). Further, the findings found that the combination of efforts including safe
environment, provision of basic needs such as households and parental guidance and care for
children are major tools to deal with the issue of street children. Finally, different suggestions
and recommendations were highlighted in details to allow the government, local leaders,
community, parents and children to be aware and handle this challenging issue.
