The U.N. estimates that there are 150 million street children around world, with 20,000 marginalized children living or working on the streets of Cambodia. I'm here to meet someone who is trying to help them, social entrepreneur, Sebastian Marot.
Hello, Sebastian.
"Hi, Alvin."
How are you? It is so nice to meet you.
Good to see you. Welcome.
"Good to see you.
He is the founder of Friends International. A social enterprise devoted to helping street children.
I started in '94 when I came here as a tourist. I was going to live and work in Japan. I stopped here, met the kids. Found the situation absolutely unacceptable. Started work and Friends grew from that."
Really. It's just, you were just passing through on your way?
"Just passing through."
Today, friends help 50,000 children a year, in seven different countries. From babies to young adults.
They provide emotional emotional support, basic education, and, for some, a place to live.
But, the focus is work is vocational training enabling kids turn earn the way of the streets, for good.
So, we build from the streets, protecting them on the streets, getting them off the street, into a program that then will lead them to a real sustainable life.
And the kids were able to articulate the fact that they wanted education.
They said, specifically education. And that is why I made my first mistake, coming from the west I said education.
I said teacher classroom.
Within two weeks, all the kids had left and we realized that education meant truly making money, finding a way to, and that's vocational training, not schooling.
Friends has now spread beyond Cambodia.
It has 500 working in seven countries.
It helps 50,000 vulnerable young people around the world each year.
Their help is desperately needed.
It's thought that most marginalized children are at risk of turning to drugs.
This young man is being trained by friends in Phnom Pen, Cambodia as a chef. He started using drugs after violence split his family.
We had family problems. My stepfather beat my mom. So I didn't want to stay there.
When I first arrived on the street, it was tough. There were lots of street gangsters who sometimes beat me.
I started sniffing glue and I also smoke other drugs. It made me feel good. When I used it, it made me happy, and all the stress and suffering would go away.
He isn't the only member of his family being helped by friends. His sister attends classes, and his mother has been trained as a seamstress. Friends sells the product she makes, providing both her, and the organization with income.
Friends believes that a child's life is best improved by working with their entire family.
We start supporting the family before the kid is able to join us.
You support the family? Tell me about this.
I didn't realize that.
It's training the women to produce things. We help them sell, the income goes back into the family and back to the organization.
Friends shops and outlets sell the goods the trainees have made.
And they are a huge hit with the tourists from around the world.
Look at this!
This is great, with everything beautifully laid out. Friends really taps into the creativity of its trainees.
This is gorgeous actually.
This is the bib?
For baby's bib. Oh I like this.
The women themselves came with new ideas and whenever we like it we test them and here they go.
The shops aren't the only way in which friends is tapping into that market. Its various restaurants are also incredibly popular with tourists and locals.
Friends, a superb tapas restaurant with delicious shakes and sharp cocktails helping street children enter the restaurant industry.
The fact that they're in the top 10, must mean that the food is pretty good because there are lots of good looking restaurants here, but they must have something that sets them apart. I'm going to see what that is.
This restaurant is typical of Friends. It's a training center and a business I'm here to meet Gustav, the manager.
Hello, I am Alvin Hall.
Hi am Gustav, nice to meet you.
Nice to meet you. So this is a restaurant run by friends?
Yes.
How long has it been here?
We opened in February 2001. So it's been in 9 years.
This restaurant certainly seems to have built up quite a following. And, every penny this restaurant makes, goes back into helping the street children.
But, the trainee's chef and his family, it has been life changing.
Six months ago, I was employed Andrew. I have changed a lot now. I am not as talkative and I work fast. Once I have money, I want to rent a house for my mother and help my sister. So, she can have a good future too.
I want to finish studying, get my certificate and become an artist. As an artist I can earn lots of money and make my family rich.
It's clear that the work which Friends does has a real impact on people's lives.
Helping families to stay together, getting children off the street, helping them to graduate to a brighter future.
It's very clear that when the kids come through the gates they have a sense of security.
There are people here to help them, with their health, with their food, with their education, and they are really happy.
Aren't you?
