Who We Are

GIVE TO VIRLANIE Please help Virlanie give street children a home, a family, food, education and a future.

Where We Work

The 7,100 islands of the Republic of the Philippines are in South East Asia, in the Philippines Sea between Indonesia, Vietnam, and Taiwan. The islands are abundant in natural resources but the distribution of wealth and opportunity is unequal and poverty abounds throughout the country. The population of the Philippines is 91 million. 36.4 million or 40% live below the poverty line. The country has the third highest rate of inequality between rich and poor in the Asia Pacific (only Nepal and China are more unequal). One in three children under three years are underweight; among school children, one in five are underweight. The infant mortality rate is 22 per 1,000 births.

The extent of poverty in the Philippines is extreme, affecting millions of children throughout the country. It is estimated that there are around 1 million street children in the Philippines, according to UNICEF. In Metro Manila, the problem is severe: approximately one-third of the population lives in slums and squatter settlements. The work of the Virlanie Foundation is aimed at the many poor children in Metro Manila whose families cannot afford basic shelter or food. With the costs of school out of reach, these children are left to lead their lives in the streets. As a mean of survival in the uncertainty of street life, Manila’s poor children sometimes turn to crime, drugs and child prostitution. Others suffer from physical and sexual abuse, malnutrition and serious health problems.

Only one in five children, ages 3-5, have access to day care or preschool services. On average, only 43% of the required English, Science, and Math competencies are mastered by Filipino students. Only 67 out of 100 children who enter first grade will complete sixth grade; only 45 out of 64 high school students will complete tenth grade. Dropping out of school in adolescence as a result of poverty is further complicated by engagement in risky behaviors like gambling, drugs, smoking, and drinking.

UNICEF estimates 5.85 million children live in slums under the threat of violent evictions and more than 100,000 are forced into prostitution and pornography. Sex tourism is rife.
Virlanie hopes to reach out and help as many children as possible but understands the task is momentous and can only be done one child at a time.

Help Virlanie reach out to street children and give back their smiles. Donate to Virlanie Foundation and Join Us.