Sherub Wangmo | Intern

Youth volunteers, who call themselves Harmony Youth, helped the Department of Youth and Sports (DYS) to conduct summer youth programmes in Thimphu.

About 60 students of various schools in Thimphu participated in dance, music and reading sessions.

Coordinators said the programmes were advertised on Facebook and participants were enrolled on a first-come-first basis.

Phuntsho Choedra, 21, who is a final year student of Gedu College, is a member of Harmony Youth. He has been volunteering to help DYS for the last eight years.

“I first got into this group because of my friends and for the refreshment,” he said. “But now I am committed for the cause.”

The members helped the children in the classes to learn dances, music and guide in reading.

Of more than 200 members in Harmony Youth, 60 helped to conduct the summer engagement programme.

Along with the summer engagement programme, 20 students attended a programme on sexual reproduction and health for three days.

In the programme, participants are briefed on responsible behaviour.

Coordinators said with increasing cases of teenage pregnancy, more participants were girls although they gave equal opportunities for both boys and girls.

Meanwhile, the summer engagement programme ended yesterday with a live Facebook event.

Edited by Tashi Dema