Youth Support Program
Education
Many Indian adolescents do not have the chance to pass through the Indian educational system completely. In our Sewing Center classes, for example, about fifty per cent of the participating women have dropped out of school before finishing the 8th grade.
Doing an apprenticeship, as it is common practise in Germany, is not an option for Indian adolescents. To meet the requirements for a well-paid job, it is mandatory that the adolescents have finished their studies. Students who have failed to achieve a school leaving qualification or were unsuccessful in completing their subsequent studies, often only have the option of working as day taller, accept badly-paid work or end up in unemployment.
To show the adolescents a better perspective on their potential future life we offer the following activities.
Workshops
CDS lends support to unemployed young people during their application processes. Especially in the scope of youth employment men shall be also promoted. Furthermore, we occasionally offer young men workshops where they learn how to repair bicycles, motorcycles or cars. In completion of the workshop, every participant receives a small tool kit. Some of them get offered a job straight away which means an important step towards a financially save future.
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It is very nice to observe that our work with the youth is successful in various ways. Not a single beneficiary of any of our activities ever forgets the help witch they received from CDS. Therefore, a vast number of volunteers are ready to work for CDS whenever Manoj needs them. Additionally, most of the volunteers are happy to serve as blood donors at any time when needed. In this way they are shown that it is possible to provide help even if one does not have material or financial means at one’s disposal.
The young people are dissuaded from smoking and drinking alcohol (driking is prohibited in the state of Gujarat). It is especially important for low-income earners to avoid wasting money on drugs. In this course, the CDS staff is supposed to set a good example. They are not allowed to smoke or drink at any time. Many volunteers follow these ideas and hence contribute to change the mentality even of people from the older generation.
Sport
Due to the fact that people in Gujarat have different religious beliefs, there are many communal riots. By organizing regular cricket tournaments, CDS intends to show the young that coexistence in peace and harmony despite religious differences is possible. Common sports activities provide an excellent way to abolish falsely held stereotypes with the potential of making new friends independent of their cultural or religious background.
