Youth empowerment: Right To Play mobilises young people as change agents in Lyari

Organisation’s Sindh coordinator says that they will hold more events on different themes.

KARACHI:

Clad in bright yellow and red T-shirts, with the slogan ‘Look after yourself, look after one another’ printed boldly on the back, Jihan Shaukat and Zohaib Shaikh sat next to each other, cheering on the performances at the World Health Day 2013 celebration in Baloch Hall, Lyari. The camaraderie between the two young men, one from Lyari and the other from Korangi- two areas that are allegedly in conflict with each other - embodied the spirit behind the event.

“Earlier, my parents would have never allowed me to come to Lyari since we hear so many bad things about the area.

But today, I am here with my trainers from Right To Play and it feels so good and different,” said Zohaib Shaikh, a young trainer from Korangi who attended the event with six other friends.

Organised by the Karachi Youth Initiative and Right To Play, the event aimed at educating the community about important health issues, such as hygiene, stress management and importance of maintaining a balanced diet, through short skits and stage performances. Young students from various schools in the area attended the event accompanied by their parents and teachers.

“We are discussing health issues today because it is International Health Day. But over time, we will hold events based on various themes, such as independence, culture and others,” said Ratan Salem, the provincial programme coordinator of Right To Play.

According to Salem, the broader aim of the initiative was to develop leadership skills, promote the spirit of peaceful co-existence and provide avenues for positive recreation in the conflict-ridden areas.

Pay it forward

The nine-month initiative, currently covering 65 schools in Karachi, focuses on training young people from the community who then visit schools and work with children in their area.

“We are training the youth to become change agents in their own communities and the response has been over-whelming. It has been an absolute pleasure working with them because they are so eager to learn and there is such a strong sense of ownership,” the project supervisor, Najma Asif, stated with a satisfied smile.

Were organised for the audience during the event by Right To Play on the World Health Day 2013. PHOTO: ATHAR KHAN/EXPRESS

Sheyma Khan, a BBA student currently working as a Right To Play trainee, claims that the programme has taught her practical skills that were overlooked during her formal education.

“My degree and books have taught me concepts but this programme has helped me understand how I can apply those things in my day-to-day life. I am very lucky to be a part of this,” said Khan.

Along with fostering a sense of tolerance and harmony with other communities, the programme also encourages a healthy interaction with the opposite gender.

“Initially there was so much awkwardness and discomfort, but look at them now,” said Salem, gesturing towards the young men and women comfortably performing a comic skit on stage about the problems that inundate an average family these days.

The crowd cheered the performances and danced along when the young male trainers took the stage and moved to traditional Balochi tunes.

The event concluded with keynote speeches and distribution of certificates to the participants by the chief guests - chairperson for the Lyari Resource Center, Habib Hassan, and PPP’s Samia Naz.

Both guests appreciated the initiative and stated that it was critical to have events like these so that the people from other areas could come to Lyari and see that it was like any other area in the city.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 14^th, 2013.