Presentation of a new education program for the prevention of gender-based violence and the promotion of healthy lifestyles

Press release on the occasion of the opening Working Meeting at the Hotel Bristol named “Presentation of a new education program for the prevention of gender-based violence and the promotion of healthy lifestyles”

Two-day working meeting Accreditation of „Program Y – Youth – Innovative approach in prevention of gender based violence and promotion of healthy lifestyles of young men and women – Next steps“, which is organised by CARE International Balkan and their partner organizations Association XY, Sarajevo, Youth Power, Mostar and Institute for Development of Youth and Community Perpetuum Mobile, Banja  Luka, started today. 

Working meeting with representatives of competent ministries for education and work with youth on entity and cantonal levels, pedagogical institutes, high schools, partner governmental and non-governmental organizations is a integral part of regular activities on Young Men Initiative II project “Promoting healthy lifestyles among young people in Bosnia and Herzegovina by challenging gender stereotypes II”, supported by Swiss Government, OAK Foundation, Austrian Development Agency and CARE International.

Barbara Dätwyler Scheuer, Director of Cooperation at the Swiss Embassy in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which donated  1.3 million € to these initiatives, addressed the attendees with a strong message:

– I am strongly convinced that society can only prosper if women and men, boys and girls are treated equally and with mutual respect. The participants in the Y Program have not only changed their perceptions, they have become open and positive members of society – said Dätwyler Scheuer.

Assistant Minister for Secondary Education and Adult Education at the Ministry of Education, Science and Youth of Sarajevo Canton Ministry, Lamija Husić said that they are attending at the working meeting today to discuss the positive aspects and challenges of implementing Program Y, which has recently been accredited in Sarajevo Canton and it is currently implemented in two schools: Secondary Dental School and Fifth Gymnasium School.

– We don’t think that’s enough. Our challenges are Herzegovina-Neretva Canton and Bosnian-Podrinje Canton Goražde, where this program has already been integrated into the classes, so we want to see where we left off and where we are in the whole process today – said Husić.

Today and tomorrow, the meeting participants will discuss the need, possibilities and obstacles of the Program Y implementation and the introduction of the program as a compulsory part of the high school curriculum, which is based primarily on the examples and experiences of those who were among the first to accredit the program, representatives of the Herzegovina-Neretva Canton and Bosnian-Podrinje Canton Goražde. 

– The interest of educational institutions for Program Y is quite pleasing to us, but more importantly, young people also share the opinion that education about healthy lifestyles and life skills should be part of the educational process – said Sumka Bučan, director of CARE.

The meeting will run from 14:30 – 18:45 on Thursday, 17.10. and from 09:30 to 13:00 on Friday, 18.10. For more information please contact project manager Saša Petkovic on 065 562 452 or via e-mail [email protected].