"Friends Don't Know I Sleep at School"... 9-Year-Old Boy Living in the Music Room

2822 Homeless Children in France, 42% Increase in One Month
UNICEF "200,000 Temporary Shelters Not Enough"

The number of children living homeless in France has surpassed 2,000.

On the 2nd (local time), the French daily Le Parisien reported that according to data compiled by UNICEF and the Federation of Solidarity Actions (FAS), the number of children living on the streets in France as of early last month was approximately 2,822, a 42% increase compared to the previous month.

Among the more than 2,000 "homeless children," about 700 were found to be infants under the age of three.

Homeless child and his mother in France. Stock photo unrelated to the article content.
[Photo by leparisien]

Nathalie Nature of the Social Solidarity Fund described it as an "unprecedented scale," stating, "Unlike previous years, it has been confirmed that many single-parent families, especially those with only mothers and children, are already on the streets before requesting help from the emergency rescue team (115)."

The case introduced by the media is that of 9-year-old David from the Democratic Republic of Congo last year. After coming to France with his mother from Congo, David was unable to find a place to live for a year and slept at the north Paris train station or on the sidewalks in front of Paris City Hall.

Fortunately, after the new school term began, with the help of the school, he is now staying in the school's music room. Besides David and his mother, three other families are also staying there.

David told Le Parisien, "I was sad and scared because I didn't know what would happen on the streets," and "My friends don't know that I sleep here."

Vanessa Benoit, head of the Paris regional emergency rescue team, said, "Since early September, we have been unable to provide solutions for about 1,000 people daily," adding, "Many are seeking shelter in building lobbies, hospital and airport waiting rooms, late-night buses, or parking lots."

UNICEF pointed out that although the French government promised last fall to "eliminate children living on the streets" and planned to increase temporary shelters to 203,000 by 2024, this is not sufficient to solve the social problem.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.