Orphaned Youth Gain Skills, Dispel Stereotypes & Contribute to Their Communities
Read All PostsNearly 11,000 young people live in orphanages and other children’s centers in the Kyrgyz Republic. The causes of child institutionalization range from the death of a parent (22 percent) and difficult life circumstances (21 percent) to single motherhood (9%) and the death of both parents (6 percent).Young people, who live in care facilities for an average of seven to eight years, lack opportunities to develop the social and core life skills needed to function successfully in society.
To fill this gap, Jasa.kg, an initiative of the International Youth Foundation (IYF) and US Agency for International Development (USAID), carried out a comprehensive life skills initiative for orphans. From 2012-2014, more than 1,260 young people from 27 residential institutions across the country benefited from training based on IYF’s Passport to Success® (PTS) curriculum, with its emphasis on the development of effective communication, teamwork, time management, responsibility, critical thinking, and other key life skills.
In all, over 70 teachers and tutors from across the Kyrgyz Republic were trained to deliver the PTS curriculum, which involves a highly interactive teaching methodology designed to engage participants in the process of learning and acquiring new skills. A key element of the program is the development of citizenship skills, including the ability to design and carry out community service activities. The resulting 65 projects led by youth, ages 14 to 17, addressed issues from assisting the elderly to repairing bridges and public facilities—and counteracted stereotypes of children in care as being uninvolved in society. What’s more, the youth and project organizers raised a total of US$16,483 to support community activities, 20 percent of which was donated by individuals and organizations.
Beginning in April 2012, the Childhood Institute, the program’s local implementing partner, started to conduct the PTS program at the Oktabrskiy Orphanage located in Jalal-Abad province. Young residents from the orphanage were paired with students from neighboring secondary schools as both groups had participated in the PTS training. Learning and engaging in exercises together helped dispel long-held beliefs about youth ‘in care’ as being outsiders and prone to delinquent behavior. “The children excelled more as a result of the PTS training,” shared Mamatova Begaim, the orphanage’s director. “They knew that to do well, they had to study.”
From April to May 2014, 95 youth engaged in the PTS trainings carried out 5 community service projects. These ranged from installing washbasins at the orphanage to creating benches at a new hospital. To support their activities, the youth raised more than US$1,325 from local businesses, community members, and government offices.
“Health is our greatest wealth,” said Mamedov Karim, a local resident, who commended the youth’s efforts to dig an irrigation ditch to prevent water from eroding streets and interfering with pedestrian and car traffic. “When the youth gathered local residents to tell us about their idea, I was ashamed,” he recalls. “Why didn’t we elders see what the young people saw?”
For another of their service projects, the youth cleaned streets, painted a building facade, whitened trees, and installed colorful lights to create a memorable ‘New Year’s Fantasy’ celebration. To prepare for the event, the youth organized meetings with local government officials to obtain financial support; with the head of the electricity station to install lights; and with local residents, shop owners, and school administrators to rally citizens to participate in cleanup efforts. As part of the event, youth from the orphanage and local schools performed dances and a concert, welcoming applause from the entire community.
The Jasa.kg initiative underscored the power of learning by doing and connecting young people to their communities.“In the process of developing social projects, the youth learned how to identify pressing issues and how to prioritize those with greatest needs,” said Damira Kudaibergenova, Program Manager of the Childhood Institute. “After their work for the elderly and disabled children, the youths’ commitment grew. They learned to work and gained important skills. They were proud and felt closely tied to their community.”
Over three years, Jasa.kg has implemented community engagement activities benefiting over 1,200 youth in the Kyrgyz Republic.