Objectives
The inter-country workshop on population education for rural youth was organized by the Department of Agricultural Extension (DOAE) in collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Country Support Team for Asia and the Pacific, on February 19 to 21, 1997 at the Sima Thani Hotel, Nakorn Ratchsima Province, Thailand. The workshop programme appears as Appendix I.
The general objective of the workshop was to evaluate the rural youth population education activities in Asia (China, Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam) that were carried out under the FAO/UNFPA Project INT/92/P94, Integration of Population Education into Programmes for Rural Youth, share experiences, information ideas and resources; and develop recommendations for strategies to continue the institutionalization of population education in programmes targeting rural youth in the region.
Specifically, the workshop objectives are:
1. Gain a better understanding of the overall situation and needs of out-of-school rural youth in Asia and determine the implications for non-formal population education programmes;2. Based on the activities of INT/92/P94 in China, Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam, share experiences, ideas and resources, present results and accomplishments, including lessons learned both positive and negative, in using the FAO/UNFPA rural youth population education Leader Guides;
3. Compare the ways in which the materials were translated and adapted to specific country situations and make recommendations for strengthening the process;
4. Analyze the content of teaching materials, including the integration of population education themes into topics such as sustainable agricultural development, environment, nutrition, general health, income/employment, leadership, gender issues, sexuality, and reproductive health among adolescents;
5. Make recommendations relative to the different methods that were used to reach rural youth, including the training of organization field staff and the role of local community volunteer leaders;
6. Make recommendations, directed to UNFPA country programmes, FAO, donor organizations, governments and NGO's, concerning future strategies to continue the institutionalization of population education for out-of-school rural youth in the region.
Attendance
The workshop was attended by youth and agricultural officials from China, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam and experts from FAO and UNFPA. The list of participants appears as Appendix II.
Opening Session
The workshop was officially opened with representatives from DOAE, UNFPA and FAO making statements. Brief presentations were made by Ms. Puengpit Dulyapach, Director, Agricultural Administrative Development Division, DOAE, Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives; Mr. Narciso Deomampo, on behalf of the Assistant Director General and Regional Representative of FAO for Asia and the Pacific; and Ms. Janet Edmondson, UNFPA CST Adviser.
Highlights of Sessions and Country Papers
After the opening session and explanation of workshop objectives, Mr. Apichai Chingprapa, Head of the Farm Youth Sub-Division, DOAE, gave a briefing on the geographic, economic, and agriculture situation of Thailand. Following the information about Thailand, Ms. Srisak Thaiarry, Executive Director of the National Council for Child and Youth Development, gave an overview of the youth programmes in Thailand and their focus. During the next session, Mr. William Seiders, FAO, Rome, presented the paper Lessons Learned Worldwide in Population Education for Rural Youth and Strategies for the Future as an attempt to place the activities of the Asian countries regarding population development in the context of similar work worldwide.
The final session before the presentation of papers by participating country representatives, was a sharing of experiences of UNFPA regarding educational activities for rural youth by Mr. Francisco Roque of UNFPA CST Adviser.
The largest portion of presentation time in the workshop was spent on individual country papers. Each of the four countries was allowed approximately one hour to present two papers; one focusing on the situation, needs, and interest of rural youth and the second on project activities under INT/92/P94.
Synthesis of Experiences
After the presentation of the country reports, one session was spent seeking commonalities in the adaptation of leadership guides for use in individual countries. This discussion, facilitated by Ms. Janet Edmondson and Mr. Francisco Roque, focused particularly on problems met in the implementation of the project.
During the second synthesis, the country representatives divided into two working groups to analyze two different aspects of project implementation. Group one was charged with considering strategies for reaching rural youth and integrating population education concepts for rural youth programmes Suggested topics included population issues, entry points for development of materials/curricula, approaches used for integration, new participatory techniques for assessing the needs of rural youth, and modalities for reaching rural youth.
Group two was charged with assessing the operational aspects of institutionalization. Suggested topics for discussion included institutional structures and/or delivery mechanisms, political and institutional support, core personnel in charge, staff development, modalities of institutionalization, and funding.
The country papers and results of the group discussions can be found in the body of this report.
