Kuala Lumpur street sleepers turn tour guides to earn dignity back, and some money
The office towers, malls and glitzy bars of the Malaysian capital conceal rising homelessness, a problem that prompted a social enterprise to recruit street sleepers to offer tourists unique perspectives of the city and learn new skills
The Kuala Lumpur most visitors see is a city of towering skyscrapers, shopping malls, glitzy bars and hipster cafes.
However, there is another side to the Malaysian capital. After most residents in the city of 7.2 million have made their way home at night, others come out of hiding and start looking for a place to sleep. It could be a bench, the steps of a building or an alleyway. Their beds are old strips of cardboard or discarded rags, while an arm serves as a pillow.
The city’s homeless population has been growing at an alarming rate. According to the latest figures made available by Kuala Lumpur City Hall, the number of street sleepers rose from about 600 in 2014 to more than 2,000 in 2015.
In January, to lend a helping hand to those living on the fringes of society, social enterprise Yellow House KL launched a programme called Unseen Tours Kuala Lumpur. Its mission is to improve the employment prospects of former street sleepers in the capital by training them to become tour guides. Once trained, the guides have the power to transform their lives and gain a measure of financial stability.
Candidates for the jobs are recommended by a government-funded rehabilitation camp for the homeless called Kem Pemantapan Jatidiri (self-identity strengthening camp).