In the meeting the partners informed each other about noteworthy activities and happenings, started planning for the JSDP Annual Meeting – JSDP 2020 and discussed the proposed Curriculum for SDG Training Manual. All the partners stressed on the importance of conferences like JSDP as partnership and collaborations are seen to be essential for development. Besides that, many organizations stressed on the importance of focusing on Youth Policies.
The Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS) met with different partners from the NGO sector on 17.03.2020 in the India Office of Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung to discuss the importance of the current partnerships, to update each other on changes and developments and to plan the next annual JSDP conference which will be held in Udaipur from the 26th to 29th September 2020.
The meeting commenced with the welcome remarks by Dr. Manda Parikh (from Yuvat Vikas Trust, Gujarat), who expressed her gratitude to the gathering for joining the meeting.
In his opening remarks Mr. Pankaj Madan welcomed everyone and reminded all participants that these days are the right time to look at shared values. Even in these difficult times of coronavirus, KAS focuses and highlights the shared moral values that connect them with their partners. Mr. Pankaj Madan (KAS) considers KAS as a family that will even grow in these unpredictable times. He specially welcomed Mr. Naveen Seth from PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry as he was joining the program for the first time.
Mr. Pankaj Madan further requested the partners to introduce themselves and share the highlights about their recent activities.
L S Gandhi Doss (Institute of Youth Development – Bangalore) introduced the current programs of his organization focusing on collaborations in the health sector, citizen monitoring and public distribution. Working closely with the National Institute for Mental Health, they are engaging in disaster management programs especially in flooded regions. Beside that his organization is working in a stress reducing program for the police in Tamil Nadu as the suicide rate among them is quite high. Further he pointed out that India is the country of the Youth, that’s why his organizations sees a need to work in the field of youth policy as well.
As Vishwa Yuvak Kendra is primarily working in Slums in Neu-Delhi focusing on health, water and hygiene, Mr. Uday Shankar Prasad Singh and Mr. Ajit Singh mentioned the need to work on the grassroots level. Mr. Ajit Singh underlined the importance of exchange among different actors and thanked KAS for the inputs his organization got from them and for the regular meetings. Partnership for them is an essential element to be able to work and grow together.
Mr. Subrata Nag Choudhury (Statesman Print Journalism School– Kolkata) stressed the importance of training good young journalists and pointed out that the SPJS is the right place to learn the necessary skills for reporting.
Gp Capt R Vijaykumar (Retd) (VSN from Madras Management Association– Chennai) mentioned that MMA is planning different events, workshops and conference on various future related topics like cyber security and communication skills. Based on the current situation all the events will be held digital. Gp Capt R Vijaykumar emphasized that difficult times make you think about new solutions.
As Mr. Naveen Seth (PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry – New Delhi) had joined the meeting of the JSDP for the first time, he said that he is mostly present to listen not to talk. His organization is also working on cyber security and is actively promoting exchange between students and government representatives or ambassadors. Further he announces that PHD is ready to cooperate with other NGOs.
Mr. Pankaj Madan from KAS introduced Ms. Simran Dhingra, who joint KAS as a research officer in January 2020. Further he values KAS work for the Indo-German exchange. Unfortunately, many lined up meetings between different youth groups as well as in and out bound delegations were canceled due to the current health situation. Nonetheless these developments give KAS more funding opportunities for the JSDP Partner Network.
Dr. Manda Parikh (Yuvak Vikas Trust– Gujarat) introduced the new programs by her organization working mainly on youth policy in Gujarat. A main aspect of the program was women working towards peace and freedom on many different levels. Beside that, YVT is organizing exchange programs between different states to enable young people to learn from each other. Dr. Manda Parikh stresses the interlinkages between community education and academic programs as they are currently also organizing a conference on democracy and citizenship.
Mr. Dayanand Tandon (CREATE – Lucknow) mentioned that Create is working in ten different states in the sectors of health, livelihood and organic agriculture. Beside that, they are running a library program and working together with differently abled people.
Discussions then took place for planning for the JSDP Annual meeting in 2020. It will be held from 26th to 29th September 2020 in Udaipur on the subject of “Democracy – of the people, by the people, for the people”. Other possible topics that were discussed were Democracy and Citizenship, Politics of Development, the Constitution, Democracy and Dissent, Youth Policy and Women in Political Development. It was mentioned that these topics sounded too academic and too far away from the grass roots.
The meeting will have sessions on the topics Legislature, Bureaucracy, Media, Judiciary and the Role of civil society plus two special sessions on Disaster Management and SDGs.
This discussion was followed by a concept presentation by Dr. Nitya Nanda (Director of the Council for Social Development). The discussion was on curriculum for SDG Training Manual. In his introduction Dr. Nitya Nanda mentioned that the SDGs cover everything that we would like to see as a development in society. That’s why he saw a need for collaborations between various partners like private players, civil society organizations as well as NGOs working at the grassroot level. Further he felt a need for capacity building of NGOs for them to have a better understanding on the SDGs and to enable them to work towards achieving the SDGs. Realizing the SDG starts from the households themselves, it is important to raise awareness about SDGs and stop mystifying them. As working together and building a link between the grass roots and political decision makers becomes more and more important, Dr. Nitya Nanda invited the representatives of the NGOs to make suggestions. As the various NGOs are working in different fields, the members of the JSDP mentioned the need of a clear structure and model on how this cooperation should work. The partners agreed on focusing on the goals “Good Health and Well Being” (Goal 3), “Quality Education” (Goal 4), “Gender Equality” (Goal 5), “Clean Water and Sanitation” (Goal 6) and “Climate Action” (Goal 13) for now. Further they discussed on adding other goals that are already linked to the chosen ones.
Dr. Nitya Nanda as the Director of the Council for Social Development was also invited to the upcoming meeting in Udaipur in order to establish and work on a clear concept for future cooperation.
Dr. Manda Parikh (YVT) and Mr. Pankaj Madan (KAS) thanked all the participants for being present and for the meaningful discussion in their concluding remarks.