The Duke of Edinburgh Awards Program is gaining momentum every year as more and more schools are incorporating the program to give young people the chance to develop skills for work and life, fulfill their potential and have a brighter future.
This enabled the Department of Youth to conduct program award coordinators workshop, which was held at the Noble House in Suva last Friday.
About 20 teachers from 15 schools in the Central Division took part.
The one-day training enabled participants to coordinate students undertaking the self development program.
Coordinator from the Department of Youth and Sports, Mr Sakiusa Regu said interest in the programme had increased over the last few years.
“There are a lot of life values in this program, which is devised to implant into the lives of young people intrinsic life values that contributes toward the holistic development of these young people. It develops the character and the attitude,” Mr Regu said.
“The intrinsic values we have in this award program complement young people towards raising their confidence level and self-esteem, young people learn to constructively use their time, they learn how to plan better and they learn how to make good decisions.”
He said the program instilled leadership qualities in the lives of the young people when they participated in it.
“A lot of them do community services in their respective communities, for example for those that are disabled or live in elderly citizens homes and in hospitals. Coming back from those voluntary services, it builds their character and empathy in young people and they know they have a responsibility to make the communities they live in a better place,” Mr Regu said.
A total of 1259 students took part in the program last year and this year the department is targeting more than 2000 participants.