December 14, 2020: Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) India, an India-registered Society and affiliate of the global humanitarian non-profit, ADRA, headquartered in Maryland, United States, launched a unique life skills programme for kids, “The Birds and Bees Talk ” (BBT) with support from the global conglomerate, Reckitt Benckiser. The curriculum was launched for children between the ages of 10-19 years.
ADRA India delivers relief and development assistance to individuals and communities across the nation – regardless of their ethnicity, political affiliation, gender, or religious association. By partnering with local communities, organisations, and governments, ADRA India is able to deliver culturally relevant programmes and build local capability for sustainable change.
This comprehensive growth-focused life skills curriculum will provide accurate, fact-based and age-appropriate information that will help adolescents make informed choices.
Launching the programme, Weston Davis, Country Director – ADRA India, said, “We are excited to introduce a one-of-its-kind, life skill training module for adolescent children with generous support and guidance from RB’s Dettol ‘Banega Swasth India’ campaign. The northeast of India has been an area of focus for us for some years now and we are proud to be leading the change in seven States. As the leader of a humanitarian organization in India, I am proud to share that through this initiative we have stayed true to our motto of justice, compassion, and love. Our efforts in India since 1992 have solely been to work towards transforming the lives of the people of India. We work independently, without any political or religious affiliations, with partners in civil society, government, and the private sector, who help us drive our narrative of development for all – irrespective of religion, caste, creed, or gender. This programme is a testament of a better and brighter future for the leaders of tomorrow. I and our complete ADRA team are humbled and honoured to be a part of this important project.”
The Birds and Bees Talk programme will be executed and implemented across three states of the northeast – Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur in both government and recognised private schools to ensure the maximum reach and beneficiaries. State governments, where this programme will be implemented, are proactively working toward ensuring that the benefits of this programme reach every child through targeted educational chapters and lessons.
The unique design of the programme comprises of 27 chapters in two levels allowing the schools to teach in a staggered format, spread over the year. The programme will help in developing key skills like critical thinking, decision-making and analytics and informed choices amongst children. The 27 chapters especially focus on imparting knowledge in an engaging and interactive way to help students understand the physical and emotional changes taking place in their adolescent years.