Implementing a Dynamic Street-Children’s Program: Successes and Challenges

The article has discusses the successes and challenges of implementing a dynamic street children’s program in Mzuzu Malawi – using a developmental life-course framework blending psychodynamic approaches, risk-factor approaches, and strain and control theories of crime and delinquency. The framework has helped the programme implementation team consider not only the phase and stage of the child’s development in their provision of care, but also the influence that early childhood dynamics of parentchild, parent-parent and child-parent-environment; life-events; peers and neighbourhoods have at each of the developmental stages of child and adolescent development, and how they can influence the child’s behaviour in both positive and negative ways. The article also discusses successes and suggests ways of addressing the identified challenges.