REGION TWO
In India, one of the flagship endeavours is the Annapoorna Breakfast programme. as was highlighted in the previous Special Issue (http://conta.cc/2zTxp9V) It has since reached five million breakfasts served, including to over 110,000 school children in over 1500 schools with 5000 volunteers! India has kept this momentum going by introducing a new programme that helps students apply what they learn in the classroom to their own lives. The Integrated Rural Development programme (IRDP) is helping over 600 students learn in a hands-on approach a way to facilitate rural development and execute targeted initiatives and activities. This not only impacts the rural community, but also benefits the students by developing their communication, leadership, and problem-solving skills to set them up for success in the future.
Children are the future of tomorrow, and it is crucial that youth do everything possible to ensure children are given the best opportunity to succeed. That starts with nutrition; then giving them the knowledge and resources to do well in school, so they are inspired to give back to their community. ‘A healthy mind in a healthy body.’
With that in mind, the youth in Nigeria conduct breakfast Seva at Ereko Methodist Primary School in Lagos for primary students as well as children with special needs. The Nigerian youth serve breakfast every week to 200 regular and 59 special needs children, making sure they are properly fed, so they can excel in the classroom.
One of the main projects taking place in Sri Lanka is in partnership with Eye Care Foundation. Sri Lanka youth have joined hands to help the organisation bring forth dedicated and committed youth to help people to get their vision back by providing lenses that are inserted surgically. The patients are selected by the Village Government Official and the list of requirements is sent to the youth so they, in turn, can provide the proper lens for each patient. Since becoming a team, the Sri Lanka youth and the Eye Care Foundation are helping around five to ten people each month and are giving new life to the fading eyes of these beautiful souls.
The service activities in the Middle East are focused on properly feeding workers and empowering women. Laban, or butter milk, is provided to 300 low income construction workers at two different sites every Saturday to quench their thirst due to the hot weather there. At a different site, volunteers provide fruits, vegetables, and juice to almost 50 workers on a weekly basis.
The youth are also continuously working on empowering less fortunate women by holding sessions on hygiene, personal health, and English to purify and enhance the mind and body.