Sixteen-year-old Nikson’s day is a lot different to the average 16-year-old in Australia. 

Nikson is the eldest of three sons in a single-parent family living in a small rural village in Kupang, Indonesia. He was only five when his father left, but, as the eldest child, he felt he had to step up and help his family survive. His mother Marni relies on him to help with household chores and look after his brothers, all while keeping up with his studies.

 “I am the eldest, so I need to take care of them,” Nikson says.

For parents of school-aged kids in Australia, home-schooling during lockdowns has been a challenge – for Nikson's mother Marni, it was almost an impossibility. Online learning meant Marni needed to buy mobile phones for her sons, plus data. “The phones cost Rp.1,700,000 (A$163.98) each. I was overwhelmed – all the parents were devastated,” she says. With her income dwindling, Marni didn’t have that kind of money. “I had to borrow it. The phone credit is also expensive. It is now two years on, and the children have to go online every day.”

As the COVID-19 pandemic hit in early 2020 and lockdowns and restrictions continued into 2021, Nikson has been helping his mother shoulder the load.

Here's what a day in the life of Nikson looks like:

5am

Nikson wakes up in the bed he shares with his two little brothers and mother. He brushes his teeth, does his chores and cooks breakfast for the family.

7am

Nikson walks 1km to the market where he helps his mother serve customers and carry heavy things at the vegetable stall. Since COVID-19 hit, the fruit and vegetables that his mother Marni has had access to have been limited - just sweet potato leaves, banana flowers and papaya. It has been hard to make a profit.

11am

Nikson returns home to have a bath and eat a lunch of vegetables before school.

11.30am

Nikson starts school online using the simple phone his mother had to buy using a loan in order to keep up with his education throughout the pandemic. He studies science, maths, Indonesian and English.

5pm

Nikson helps neighbours with any jobs he can to earn extra money for his family, sometimes taking out garbage or cleaning water taks. If he has any free time, Nikson plays soccer with his brothers before dinner.