Scheme for Adolescent Girls (Sag)
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Scheme for Adolescent Girls Administrative Guidelines 2018 Government of India Ministry of Women & Child Development 1 SCHEME FOR ADOLESCENT GIRLS (SAG) 1. Introduction 1. Adolescence is a crucial phase in the life of woman. This stage is intermediary between childhood and womanhood and it is the most eventful phase for mental, emotional and psychological well-being. The life-cycle approach for holistic child development remains unaddressed if adolescent girls are excluded from the developmental programmes aimed at human resource development. A special intervention for adolescent girls called SAG was devised in the year 2010 using the ICDS infrastructure with an aim at breaking the inter- generational life-cycle of nutritional and gender disadvantage thus providing a supportive environment for self-development of adolescent girls. 1.2. Realizing the multi-dimensional needs of out of school pre-adolescent girls (11-14 years) and with a aim to motivate these girls to join school system, the Government approved implementation of restructured Scheme for Adolescent Girls (SAG) to focus on out of school adolescent girls in the age group of 11-14 years. With this, the KSY to be phased out in selected districts of SAG. Scheme for Adolescent Girls - SAG would be implemented using the platform of Anganwadi Services of Umbrella ICDS Scheme through Anganwadi Centers (AWCs). 2. Objectives of the Scheme The key objective of the scheme is to facilitate, educate and empower AGs so as to enable them to become self-reliant and aware citizens. The scheme has the following objectives – i) Enable the AGs for self-development and empowerment. ii) Improve their nutrition and health status. iii) Promote awareness about health, hygiene, nutrition iv) Support out of school AG to successfully transition back to formal schooling or bridge learning / skill training. v) Upgrade their home-based skills and life skills. vi) Provide information/guidance about existing public services such as Primary Health Centers, Rural Hospitals/CHCs, Post Office, Bank, Police Station, etc. 3. Geographical Coverage: SAG being implemented in 205 districts shall be expanded in phased manner. The pattern of phased expansion will be as under:- - Phase-1: In 2017-18, the scheme to be extended with revised financial norms to additional 303 high burden districts identified under NNM. - Phase-2: In 2018-19, the scheme to be extended with revised financial norms to all the districts of the country. List of 205 districts is at Annexure-I. List of 303 districts selected for expansion of the scheme in 2017-18 is at Annexure-II. KSY will be phased out with the expansion of SAG. The scheme SAG to be implemented in all the districts of the country with effect from 01.04.2018 and KSY will cease to operate. 2 4. Target Group: The Scheme will cover out of school girls in the age group of 11-14 years. The out of school girls in the age group of 11+ to 14 years, are entitled for supplementary nutrition under the scheme they will also receive life skills education, nutrition and health education, awareness about socio-legal issues, existing public services etc. The scheme aims at motivating out of school girls to go back to formal schooling or vocational /skill training under non-nutrition component of the scheme. 5. Platform: The scheme will be implemented through existing Anganwadi Centres (AWCs) under Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS). 6. Services: A package of services would be given to adolescent girls is as under:- i) Nutrition provision ii) Iron and Folic Acid (IFA) supplementation iii) Health check-up and Referral services iv) Nutrition & Health Education (NHE) v) Mainstreaming out of school girls to join formal schooling, bridge course /skill training vi) Life Skill Education, home management etc. vii) Counseling/Guidance on accessing public services, The Needs of the AGs viz. physical, physiological and health needs have been taken into consideration while designing the services. The scheme has two component Nutrition and Non nutrition. 7. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF SERVICES 7.1.1 Nutrition Component: Each out of school AGs in the age group of 11-14 years registered under the scheme will be provided supplementary nutrition similar to that of pregnant women and lactating mothers under ICDS containing 600 calories, 18-20 grams of protein and micronutrients for 300 days in a year. Nutrition to be given in the form of Take Home Ration (THR) or Hot Cooked Meals (HCM) whichever is feasible. However, if hot cooked meal2 is provided to them, strict quality standards have to be put in place. 7.1.2 Cost for Nutrition provision: The financial norms will be Rs. 9.5/- per beneficiary per day for 300 days in a year. This would be inclusive of the cost of micronutrient fortification. 7.1.3 Funding pattern: The Government of India and States share the cost of supplementary nutrition in ratio of 50:50. For eight North Eastern States (Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura and Sikkim) and three special category Himalayan States (H.P., J&K and Uttrakhand), the share of Centre and State is in the ratio of 90:10 and Union Territories (without legislation) are funded 100% of the financial norms or the actual expenditure incurred whichever is less. 7.2.1 Non Nutrition Component: The scheme aims at motivating out of school girls in the age group of 11-14 years to go back to formal schooling or skill training under non-nutrition 3 component of the scheme. The other services under non nutrition component are IFA supplementation, Health check-up and Referral services, Nutrition & Health Education, Life Skill Education and Counseling/Guidance on accessing public services. Emphasis are made on convergence of services under various schemes/ programmes of Health, Education, Youth Affairs & Sports, Panchayati Raj etc so as to achieve the desired impact. Non Nutrition Services are listed above at para 5 Sl No. (ii) to (vii) will be provided @ Rs. 1.1 lakh per project/annum to out of school adolescent girls of age 11-14 years by establishing convergence with concerned Departments. NGOs may be engaged by the States/UTs to impart various non nutrition services under the scheme. 7.2.2 Funding pattern: The Government of India and States share the cost under non- nutrition component in ratio of 60:40. For eight North Eastern States (Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura and Sikkim) and three special category Himalayan States (H.P., J&K and Uttarakhand), the share of Centre and State is in the ratio of 90:10 and Union Territories (without legislation) are funded 100% of the financial norms. 7.2.3 Activity wise details on non nutrition services are as under: 7.2.3.1 Support for successfully transition back to formal schooling or bridge learning / skill training: The AWW shall undertake home visits in her area, take the help of PRIs, school teachers, School Management Committee members (SMC) and other stakeholders to identify out of School Girls in the age group of 11+ to 14 years. Criteria for defining Out of School is as follows: i) Never enrolled ii) Enrolled but never attended iii) Drop outs (as per state definition) States/UTs with strengthened convergence with Education Department will ensure that OOS girls are enrolled in school. The objective of the convergence with the education system is enabling, facilitating and motivating out-of-school adolescent girls to enroll for schools or skill training. The AGs registered under SAG could either be drop outs or never gone to schools. The appropriateness of the class accordingly will be decided by the school authorities. The following activities to be conducted to Support the out of school girls for successfully transition back to formal schooling or bridge learning / skill training and ICDS supervisors to monitor these actions: i) Anganwadi workers during the home visits by explaining them the benefits of education will counsel the families of AGs to enroll them in the schools. ii) Information/guidance about entry/re-entry into formal schools and motivation to do the same will be provided in coordination with Education Department and with the support from SMCs and teachers. iii) The school authorities may be invited to address the out of school AGs on pre- decided days to motivate these AGs by explaining them the benefits of education and motivate them to enrol them to schools or skill training. The teachers may be invited attend the Kishori Diwas for this purpose. 4 iv) Female role models (college going girls from the village, women police officers from the district, state-level sportswomen, women from the village who are now working in other professions) will be invited to motivate out-of-school girls to pursue education. v) SMC members, Teacher, AWW and Sakhi, Sahelis will be involved in mobilizing the community to support the girls and to facilitate their going back to school and access bridge courses. vi) The District, Project and Village level Committees of which the school functionaries would also be a member will ensure convergence and also monitor progress in terms of enrolment of out-of-school adolescent girls in regular schools and non-formal education centres. vii) Community mobilization through community based structures, intensive IEC campaign, other communication activities such as mid-media activities, kala jathas, street plays and others to motivate family member as well as AGs by explaining to them the benefits of education and to enrol them. Working with the community is imperative to facilitate a social behavior change and girls' transition to adulthood and their marriage after attaining the age of 18 years and after completion of the full cycle of elementary education. This will involve actively working with influential community members such as PRI members, religious leaders and other community leaders and influencers viii) Issue of education of girls may be discussed in the meeting of Gram sabha.