The Child and Youth Development Program, based on an approach that takes into account and builds on the child’s strengths, is being implemented between 2015 and 2017. At the start of the program period, 18 organizations across the country were supported to use the strengths of children and youth at risk for their intervention and coping skills.
The program has provided funding and expertise to deliver initiatives that recognize children’s ability to make choices and decisions in difficult times; initiatives in which children are actively involved and that demonstrate an understanding that children are not helpless but can actively work to change their lives.
The two main aims of the program are to develop children and young people’s self-confidence and coping skills and to develop adults’ skills to support children and young people living in difficult circumstances.
The key principles underpinning the program are: safeguarding children’s rights, child participation, non-discrimination, in the best interests of the child, respecting and building on strengths, sustainability, effectiveness and efficiency.
The funded 18 projects began their activities in December 2015 and continued till December 2017. All of them were selected after open call for proposals, that was implemented in 2015 in the period August-October in two stages. In the first stage – presentation of an idea proposal 60 organizations from all over the country responded. For the second stage – presentation of a project proposal, were admitted 41 organizations out of all that took part in the first stage.
The program for child and youth development, based on an approach that takes into account and builds on the child’s strengths, is implemented by Workshop for Civic Initiatives Foundation with the financial support of the OAK Foundation.
