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espite his family facing financial problems, NM, 13, is full of spirit when it comes to education. Even though he had to quit formal schooling when he was only in the fourth grade, NM had never given up on continuing his education.

NM’s dream came true when his friend’s brother offered him to study at a non-formal school run by Sahabat Anak (Friends of Children), a non-profit organization focused on providing education to impoverished children
since 2006.

NM has now been studying at the Sahabat Anak-run school for almost two years.

“I want to undertake category A this year. I want to be a doctor or an accountant in the future,” NM told The Jakarta Post recently. Category A allows students who have dropped out of elementary school to obtain an elementary school certificate.

NM, who upon Sahabat Anak’s request will remain anonymous, lives in Tangerang and sells tissues around Mangga Besar. He wants to continue his study at a formal school once he has received the certificate.

Besides financial issues, NM is not being supported by his mother, who sells pempek (fish cake) from her home, to continue his studies. “My mother doesn’t really care whether I continue my studies or not. So I have to find a solution by myself,” said NM who always puts a smile on his face despite his hard life.

He goes to school located in Manggarai, Central Jakarta, five days a week by train. The foundation, which have seven schools across Jakarta, provides a transportation subsidy of between Rp 10,000 (75 US cents) and Rp 20,000 for their students.

Another Sahabat Anak student AEJ, 10, also enjoys studying at the school. AEJ, her younger brother and older sister dropped out of school last year due to financial reasons.

“I want to go to school because I want to go to university later on. I want to be a math teacher and I hope my mother can help me to achieve this [dream],” AEJ excitingly said with a glowing face. They usually take a Transjakarta bus to the school from their rented house in Bantar Gebang, Bekasi.

AEJ has three siblings and her mother is the backbone of the family since her father had left them a few years ago. Her mother works as tailor and masseuse to provide the family food on the table.

AEJ and her two siblings have been studying at the Sahabat Anak school since September last year. She was offered to study there by her Sunday school teacher.

According to Jakarta administration data in 2014, the number of dropouts reached over 1,000 children. That is why Sahabat Anak manages seven tutoring centers in Prumpung, Grogol, Gambir, Tanah Abang, Cijantung Manggarai and Kota Tua with around 800 students, says Alles Saragi, the Sahabat Anak director.

The foundation relies on donors to fund its programs. Most of the teachers are also volunteers who commit to teaching once a week in one school for at least three months.

The foundation teaches math, social science, natural science, English and Bahasa Indonesia. It also has extracurricular activities, such as sports, dance, drama, music and cooking.

“Our main purpose is to get them [the students] back to formal schooling,” Alles said, adding that there were students who had stopped coming to school but its teachers would continue to visit their homes.

“Sometimes, they are skeptical about their own lives. Some have to take care of their younger siblings, while others stop coming because they cannot earn money by going to school.”