Their thin bodies look especially fragile under the dim lights in the staircase of an old Shamshuipo building. The two boys, aged five and eight, stop for a second to take a breath while dragging a big pack of cardboard down the stairs.
On the street, Kwok Ching-fai and younger brother Yiu-fai walk in front of their mother to a recycling shop around the corner. They know the way well because for years it has been a routine in their struggle to make a living.
This day they make $10 selling the cardboard they have spent two days collecting. It was enough for their mother to buy some vegetables and fish for their dinner.
The boys are among dozens of 'child scavengers' identified in the district by social workers at the Society for Community Organisation.
Based on its research, the group estimates more than 1,800 children under 15 have to work after school to make ends meet by collecting cardboard and helping their parents in cleaning work. They work an average of 61/2 hours a week, but some work as many as 231/2 hours, earning just a few dollars a month.
For two or three nights a week, Ching-fai and Yiu-fai follow their mother, Fu Zhenai, to collect cardboard outside restaurants or shops.
