Published: 4:54pm, 19 Nov 2024Updated: 5:03pm, 19 Nov 2024
Ibrahim, a father of two teenagers and an asylum seeker in Hong Kong, says he feels helpless for not being able to provide for his children, as buying new trainers or even educational tools needed for their learning such as laptops are out of his reach.
Advertisement
Because of his status, he cannot legally work, even though he has been in Hong Kong for 19 years.
“I have kids, but I can’t take care of them. I’m helpless for my kids,” said Ibrahim, who is from Africa. “They always complain, ‘Why don’t I have this? Why do my classmates have this?’
“At times, [my son] uses my phone and his mother’s phone to do homework, or a donated iPad, but he always complains he needs a keyboard.”
Local charity Grassroots Future, which helps refugees and asylum seekers, will soon be able to provide donated laptops to needy children with the support of an annual fundraising drive, Operation Santa Claus (OSC).
Advertisement
The project funded by OSC – TE(A)CH at the Grassroots – will also teach the children IT skills as well as coding and web tools useful for school, such as Canva for making PowerPoint slides.