anecdotal evidence suggests that the number of children living on the streets is increasing at an alarming rate, and that illegitimate children and children born into broken families form the bulk of children living and begging on the streets. Other factors such as violence in the home, poverty, disintegration of family values and alcoholism contribute to this phenomenon. The Department of Social Welfare is responsible for looking into the welfare of children living in the street. MKUKUTA strives to provide adequate social protection and rights to vulnerable and needy groups. Tanzania has and continues to rely on institutional care for street children and orphans although there is now a policy shift from the Social Welfare Department towards informal foster care, with residential care centres considered a last resort. Informal foster care is not new in the traditional/customary set up and has already been discussed with regards to orphans. Some argue that the extended family is still intact and that what is needed is support from the Government in terms of adoption of a national social protection strategy NGOs have been taking the lead in advocating and lobbying for children living in the street including providing them with drop-in centres. 68 NGOs and other legal organizations have expressed their concern over the treatment of children living in the streets through the application of the Township (Removal of Undesirable Persons) Act. This law is viewed as discriminatory and oppressive as it is used to round up and arrest street children for loitering and vagrancy. It is their concern that children are not in the streets by choice but rather due to difficult circumstance in their homes that have forced them to migrate and live in towns. 10. Responsibilities of the Child Article 31 The 1996 Child Development Policy states that children have the responsibility to 68 These NGOs include the Dogodogo Centre, Kwetu Counselling, and Children in the Sun, and Mkombozi centre for street children, Amani Children Home and Action for Children. 73