Staff Reporter 

The Youth Bhutan Network (YBN) sensitised 150 Class X students of Changzamtog Middle Secondary School (CMSS) and adolescents in Thimphu about the importance of eating “correctly” for one’s health and the environment’s on the International Youth Day on September 21.

This year’s International Youth Day theme was “Transforming Food System: Youth Innovation for Human and Planetary Health”.

According to the Youth Centre Division, Department of Youth and Sports (DYS) of the education ministry, the initiative’s objective was to have older youth talk to the adolescents using the peer approach to give them some variety from the usual method of teachers teaching them and becoming a part of an academic assessment.

The students were sensitised on food sources, major nutrients from foods, eating habits, unhealthy diets, junk foods, food packaging or labelling, its impact on the health and environment, food waste, and how to reduce food waste.

The participants pledged to reduce food waste, eat less junk foods, encourage their friends to cut down on consumption of junk foods, and reduce the use of plastic.

The programme would be followed up by activities to track the eating habits of adolescents to design and implement interventions accordingly.

The event also saw the signing of MoU between the YBN and CMSS as an agreement to continue their partnership in addressing adolescent’s and young people’s concerns.

The YBN intends to continue the sensitisation to all the students in a phased manner before the end of the academic year.

The event was attended by two members from the Youth Peer Education Network (Y-PEER),Bhutan Sharing and Loving Youth Group, and two groups from the YBN.

The YBN is a platform for Youth-led Groups to network and work together, established in 2015 with the support of UNICEF and DYS and has 12 youth groups.