YHP India (phase 4)

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Location

Marginalised communities in Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai, Assam and West Bengal.

Timing

Phase 4: 2022-2025 (The programme began 2010).

The context

Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) remain a growing concern for the health of young people in India. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), NCDs account for an estimated 63% of all deaths in India and there is a 23% risk of premature death between 30 and 70 years from NCDs. Cardiovascular and chronic respiratory diseases are the most prevalent causes of death, accounting for 27% and 11% respectively.1

The WHO suggests that more than two-thirds of premature deaths can be linked back to NCD risk factors such as tobacco use, physical inactivity, or poor diet, that are first established in adolescence.2 

In addition to prevalent NCD risk-factors, the education system was severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic between 2020 and 2021, interrupting education for over 300 million young people and exacerbating the already acknowledged learning crisis, due to a severe loss of learning and potential school dropouts3. It is also acknowledged that those most impacted are often children in under-resourced areas and the youngest children who are at key developmental stages.

Our objectives

  • To contribute to the improved health and wellbeing of children and young adults aged 10-24, by encouraging them to avoid NCD risk behaviours including tobacco use, harmful use of alcohol, an unhealthy diet and physical inactivity.
  • Improve health services and develop an enabling support system and policy environment.
  • Train 30 young adults (age 18-30) from economically disadvantaged backgrounds and provide them with employable skills as well as access to employment and entrepreneurship opportunities.

Our programme

The YHP in India works to empower children, parents and communities with education and skills, designed to address non-communicable disease (NCD) risk factors and provide opportunities and platforms to create meaningful change.
 

Targeting NCD risk factors

By targeting NCD risk-factors and sexual and reproductive health we aim to:

  • empower young people through building knowledge and skills on NCD prevention, enabling them to take informed decisions about their health, using peer education and community outreach  
  • mobilise communities including schools, families and community leaders on NCD prevention and the broader health of young people, to create a supportive and enabling environment for young people
  • strengthen health services to meet the needs of young people in our target communities
  • advocate for a policy environment that supports NCD prevention and promotes the health of young people.

 

Providing accress to learning and development with RISE

On International Day of the Girl in 2022, AstraZeneca colleagues in India designed a 12-month development journey for girls from underserved communities across Chennai and Bangalore. This grassroots initiative was named 'RISE', and is an embodiment of the Girls Belong Here campaign.

The RISE programme provides access to learning and development including:

  • monthly training sessions in YHP Health Information Centres (HICs), covering diverse topics aimed at empowering the participants
  • visits to AstraZeneca premises on the annual International Day of Girls (October), during which each girl is mentored by a senior employee
  • internship opportunities at AstraZeneca. 

Our achievements

To date, YHP India has:

  • trained 7,355 Peer Educators in 6 NCD modules
  • directly reached over 620,500 youth (50% girls) and over 260,200 community members
  • additionally, the programme has trained 2,280 teachers and over 2,250 health professionals on raising awareness of NCD risks and prevention.

 

Through RISE:

  • 23 girls have received development training in soft skills, exhibiting remarkable progress in their public speaking ability, their ability to interact with employers and perform in job interviews
  • 4 of the RISE participants secured intern positions and 2 girls then joined as full-time employees, post their 3 months internship.

Our partner

 

Plan International India is responsible for the overall implementation of the programme.

References:

1. India State-Level Disease Burden Initiative Collaborators. Nations within a nation: variations in epidemiological transition across the states of India, 1990-2016 in the Global Burden of Disease Study. Lancet. 2017; 390(10111):2437–60.

2. World Health Organization. Global Action Plan for the prevention and control of noncommunicable diseases 2013–2020. 2012. https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/94384/9789241506236_eng.pdf;jsessionid=52E1B3C677527E0D4DB828DDB046B5A3?sequence=1. 

3. UNESCO. 2022. Global monitoring of school closures. Available here: https://en.unesco.org/covid19/educationresponse