The orchestra will perform at this year's 67th edition of the festival, to be held on February 7-11 at the Ariston Theatre.
Orchestra conductor Fabio Chavez leads the group of musicians, aged between 10 and 30, in a diverse repertoire from classical to pop, with some heavy metal and soundtracks mixed in.
"The world gives us rubbish, and we transform it into music," Mr Chavez said.
Cateura is an informal settlement situated above a landfill in Asuncion, the capital city of one of the poorest countries in Latin America, where one in six children under five years old is malnourished.
The neighbourhood's children build instruments from what they find there - buckets, spoons, metal pipes, rope, cardboard, tin cans, and a variety of other recyclable materials - to construct violins, violas, cellos, basses, guitars, flutes, saxophones, trumpets, and percussion instruments.
The orchestra has become a symbol for UNICEF, demonstrating how music, culture, and commitment can take children off the streets and provide an opportunity for a more promising future.
UNICEF also sponsors a program in Paraguay called Abrazo, meaning “hug”, which aims to combat the issue of children working on the street.
The organisation has opened 37 centres that provide medical assistance and educational support for families so that children aren't forced to work.
"Like the children of Cateura, many other children have a dream, and to make it happen they need opportunities," UNICEF Italy spokesperson Andrea Iacomini said.
"We promote music, dance, and song to ensure that children have not only the right to survival, health, and education, but also the opportunity to dream and build a better future, despite poverty, war, and hunger.”
With ANSA
