Three- day CREAM III training in Bangalore

A three-day training for CREAM III programme coordinators and social activists was organised at Don Bosco Provincial house, Bangalore from 1-3 December 2020. In adherence to COVID safety protocols, the 50 staff members from the 20 districts were divided into two batches. The first batch had 25 participants from Bangalore, Ramanagara, Mysuru, Chitradurga and Davangere. The inaugural ceremony commenced with a prayer song and Fr. Sebastian Kudackat, Rector of Don Bosco Provincial House Bangalore, welcomed the dignitaries on and off the dais. The chief guest of the day, Dr. Antony Sebastian- Chairperson, Karnataka State Commission for the Protection of Child Rights (KSCPCR) and the resource person, Mr. Sonykutty George – Child Protection Specialist, UNICEF, Hyderabad inaugurated the training by lighting a lamp. Other dignitaries present were Fr. Jose Koyickal- Vice Provincial, Sacred Heart Province of Bangalore; Fr. Joy Nedumparambil- Executive Director, BREADS and Fr. Rubin Mathew- Asst. Director, BREADS.  Dr. Antony Sebastian promised full support from KSCPCR to CREAM III for the welfare and benefit of the children. The formal inauguration concluded with Fr. Rubin Mathew proposing a vote of thanks.

Mr. Sonykutty George initiated the training for the participants on advocacy, systems and structures in place for child rights protection and the relevant ways in which CREAM III could intervene or advocate for the rights of children. Fr. Rubin Mathew took a short session on Don Bosco Job Placement Network to promote effective future collaborations in facilitating the employment of marginalised and vulnerable youth. It was followed by a session by Fr. Joy Nedumparambil and Mr. Benny Augustine, Project Manager, BREADS, who explained in detail the various aspects of CREAM III, its expected impact and objectives. Thereafter, Mr. Manjappa- State Coordinator, CREAM took a session on Makkala Grama Sabhas based on the new circular from the state government.

On the second day, the main agenda was to familiarise the team about the project objectives, goals, activities, targets, documentation and reporting formats. The BREADS team introduced the Management Information System (MIS) and the templates for the baseline survey to be conducted in the districts. The newly-released child safeguarding policies compiled by BREADS for the various Don Bosco institutions including child care institutions, schools, colleges, skill training centres, churches, social work centres and the Province were introduced to the participants. The post-lunch session was dedicated to group discussions on strategic planning of advocacy actions and programmes with the government systems from village to state levels. The groups also discussed various strategies to enhance child rights awareness and reduce the violations against children. The second day wound up with presentations of the project team about CREAM III initiatives carried out in their respective districts since October.

Mr. Manjappa took over the first session on the third day to present the child rights handbook developed to train children in schools. The resource person for the day, Ms. Anjali Ramanna- Chairperson, Child Welfare Committee 2, Bangalore trained the participants on the processes of establishing Child Protection Committees in Gram Panchayats, protocols of Children’s Grama Sabhas and the Village Justice Committee.