New Delhi: Acknowledging the role and necessity of adults participation in achieving some crucial national and international proclaimed commitments, the Union Health Secretary Apurva Chandra informed that adolescents’ health, education, and empowerment is vital to achieving our national and international development goals, including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
Underlining the importance of adolescents’ health, education, and empowerment to ensure their meaningful contribution, the health secretary said, “We recognize that ensuring their health, education, and empowerment is vital to achieving our national and international development goals, including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and our government is dedicated to creating an environment where adolescents can thrive, make informed decisions, and contribute meaningfully to society.”
“India has and will continue to remain steadfast in its commitment to nurturing adolescents’ talents, supporting their ambitions and empowering them to build a brighter, inclusive future for all,” he added.
Adding to it Dr Rodrigo H. Ofrin, WHO Representative to India echoed, “Investing in adolescents leads to smart investment in the future of the nation and achieving the SDGs would not be possible without investing in adolescents.”
Speaking at the launch of a report on the well-being of adults in the country, Chandra said, “India has the largest population of adolescents in the world, 253 million strong, and growing. Our adolescents are the backbone of our future, embodying the promise of a vibrant and progressive nation… Several strides have been made in advancing the well-being of adolescents in the country such as the School Health and Wellness Programme (SHWP) under Ayushman Bharat aims to strengthen health promotion and disease prevention interventions for school children using trained teachers.”
“By fostering partnerships with non- governmental organizations, community leaders, and international agencies, we aim to amplify our efforts and reach every adolescent, regardless of their socio-economic background,” he added.
According to the announcement, Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health commissioned report, “Economic Case for Investment in the Well-being of Adolescents in India,” builds on the global findings presented in “Adolescents in a Changing World – The Case for Urgent Investment and highlights significant improvements in adolescent well-being in India over recent decades.
Chandra also informed that, “India is on the cusp of launching the U-WIN platform which is modeled after the Co-WIN platform and emphasised that the launch of the platform would lead to a transformative impact on not just storing the health records of every child but also in digitising these records as well as in monitoring, identifying and rectifying the challenges that arise.”
