Save the Children has planned to implement the project “New Horizons Plus” – an alternative project which provided employable skills training to the most marginalized children & adolescents between the age group of 15 – 20 years, to help them explore dignified & alternative means of livelihood in West Bengal. Save the Children, India engaged SIGMA Foundation for undertaking a Baseline Study prior to the intervention of this project. The aim of the Baseline study was to understand the present status of education, vocational or skills training, employment and income generation among Adolescent and Young People and their family members and gender sensitive practices, which affects the adolescent and the youth (AYPs) in accessing their rights and acquiring capabilities for leading a better life. Further, the assessment proposes to capture the knowledge level on Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) and social protection services of the target group as well as their family members. Under the study, the household survey carried out with 1,536 respondents. Further, 55 FGDs and 25 KIIs were conducted with various stakeholders like adolescents, mothers, GP members, health care workers, employers etc. The geographical coverage of the study were 3 GPs of Sagar Block of South 24 Parganas, Kamarhati Municipality and 4 wards of Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC).

The Baseline study found that socioeconomic contexts of the urban and rural areas were quite different which have differential impact on the education, employment and SRHR of the AYPs. Strikingly, illiteracy among the parents were much higher among the urban parents compared to their rural counterpart. Results brought to light that irregularity of attendance in educational institutions and the drop outs have been very high, particularly in the urban areas. There was an absence of aspiration to complete secondary level education, mainly among boys, thereby reflecting poor value of education in equipping an individual with better opportunities in life. General awareness of the boys on different aspects of SRHR was far less compared to that of the girls in both rural and urban areas. There were gaps in (i) understanding the causes behind menstruation and the practices to be followed for maintaining proper menstrual health; (ii) knowledge of the minimum child bearing age; and (iii) methods for family planning. Prevalence of strong gender stereotypes was reflected through the perceptions and practices of the surveyed households, especially so in the rural areas.