Brazil’s vast social inequality renders millions of children below, or close to, the poverty line. Many are vulnerable to physical or sexual abuse and exploitation – sometimes from their own families. Due to this abuse, some flee to the streets where they become even more vulnerable to exploitation, others are trapped in their abusive families until they are found and rescued.

A government study amongst some of the girls forced into prostitution found that the average age of their first sexual encounter was just 10 years old.

When a child or teenager needs to be brought into care they are placed in one of the thousands of care-homes in Brazil. The conditions of some of these homes are precarious, leaving the children exposed to further abuse and the denial of their right to a loving family and participation in the local community.

ReVive works in a number of areas to help change this scenario; prevent young people being brought into care, provide high quality care for those currently in children’s homes, transition to family-based methods of care (e.g. fostering) and strive to find a forever family for every young person who needs one either through adoption or reintegration back into their biological family.