Pune Municipal Corporation and Urban95 organise Parents+ Programme Launch Workshop in the city
Pune, 13th July 2022: As part of the Urban95 initiative, the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) in partnership with the Bernard van Leer Foundation (BvLF) and with the technical support of Aga Khan Foundation, launched the Parents+ Programme recently. This programme is a part of Phase II under the Urban95 initiative. Mr Vilas Kanade, Additional Municipal Commissioner (Special), PMC launched the workshop in the presence of Shreemati Ghage, Deputy Commissioner for Social Welfare and Development, the Steering Committee members, Nodal Technical team, Urban95 champions, BvLF representatives, Project Management Support Unit (PMSU), Parents+ Team and the Project Management Unit (PMU) representing Egis India. The workshop presented the Human Centred Design approach adopted in planning the programme activities. The Parents+ programme aims to enable caregivers of young children and frontline workers to use responsive caregiving practices for children in the age group of 0 to 6 years at health and education facilities as well as in families.
Ashwini Godse, Team Lead for Parents+, presented the programme design. Manali Menon, Monitoring and Evaluation expert, presented the Human Centred Design work done so far and involved the participants by encouraging them to share inputs on some programme components. Priyanka Sonavane, Community Mobiliser, expressed the vote of thanks to conclude the event.
Mr. Vilas Kanade, ADMC Special, PMC said: “To build anything strong, we need a strong foundation. The early years are significant in giving children a base for their future life. This target population of the Parents+ programme is very important as it is addressing the youngest citizens of the city. The PMC has signed certain important MOUs for the development of Pune city, and this is one of them. Sensitising the caregivers about how to nurture young children will certainly benefit all”.
Shreemati Ghage, Deputy Commissioner for Social Welfare and Development, said: “If the seeds sown are pure, the tree blossoms. If children are nurtured well in the early years, they can reach their full potential. The objective of Urban95 Parents+ is very relevant to the needs of the community. Just as ASHA workers provide dosages for building immunity in children, Parents+ can provide dosage to parents about the importance of early childhood.”
Ms Rushda Majeed, India Representative, BvLF said: “Parents+ is all about helping parents and caregivers provide a strong start to children in the crucial early years of life. We are excited about the programme launch in Pune and congratulate all teams who have been working tirelessly to make this workshop and the whole Urban95 initiative a success. We are happy to partner with the PMC and AKF in this important initiative and hope to strengthen the partnership further as we continue working together to support all families and communities in the city.”
Ms Tinni Sawhney, CEO, AKF said: “In 2021, AKF commenced a partnership with BvLF and the PMC for the Parents+ Programme as part of the Urban95 initiative in Pune city. AKF’s role is to ensure that Human Centred Design is followed in the project, which will bring out the real needs of the community and the frontline workers. AKF believes in cocreating solutions that involve and respect the ideas of the stakeholders. The team is committed, experienced and empathic. Maharashtra and Pune are a priority for AKF and we will contribute our best expertise in this project.”
