\nSpecial to The Nation
\nMae Fah Luang, Chiang Rai<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.hadf1985.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/800_7246d53b1ec5769.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nHow a low-key project at hilltribe schools in Northern Thailand is helping young students improve their health and practise their culture<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On a sunny\nmorning in mid-August, hilltribe students of Ban Pana Sawan school in Chaing\nRai\u2019s Mae Fah Luang district dress in their ethnic costumes and perform a\nseries of tribal activities and dances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
The playground\nof the school is transformed into a colourful stage as young Akha, Lahu and\nLisu students have fun in their physical education and art and music classes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The activities\nare part of “Dek Doi Kin Dee” project, which aims to promote\nwell-being and healthy eating habits in these young people who live in upstream\ncommunities in Chiang Rai’s Mae Chan, Mae Fa Luang, Mae Suai and Wiang Kaen\ndistricts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve applied\nthe ethnic identity of each of the hilltribes to our physical education and\nrhythmic activity classes to encourage our students to do more physical\nactivity and improve their health in line with the Dek Doi Kin Dee scheme,\u201d\nSutin Pingsusaen, acting director of Ban Pana Sawan school, tells The Nation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Physical\nactivity was introduced to the students this year in a follow up to the earlier\nsuccessful campaign to promote healthy eating habits under the Dek Doi Kin Dee\nproject, which saw the school impose a ban on selling soft drinks and snacks on\nthe premises.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As with all\nyoung people, resisting the sugary drinks and snacks is an effort but both\nKanyanee Sae Mao, a 12-year-old Akha girl, and her pal Sasiwimon Lafuna,10, of\nthe Lahu tribe, admit that the campaign has proved beneficial.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Though the girls\nstill buy the odd snack or sugary drink, they consume far less than before and\nthat\u2019s saving them Bt5 to Bt10 of their pocket money every day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBy reducing the\nsnacks and doing more exercise, we can feel that our health has improved. We\nwant the campaign to continue,\u201d they say with smiles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Other hilltribe\nstudents tell The Nation that they enjoy the PA classes as it allows them time to\nexercise and show off their tribal culture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sutin adds that\nboth the PA and ban on snacks in school have been a great success and have\nhelped the students to feel healthier. \u201cThey rarely get sick now and are\nconfident about expressing themselves in front of public,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Medical checks\nare undertaken regularly and the improvements in health have been significant,\u201d\nthe acting director adds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ban Ruam Jai\nschool in Mae Chan district has also campaigned for healthy eating habits under\nthe Dek Doi Kin Dee program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Here students\nare taught to plant organic vegetables and sell them to vendors, raise chickens\nfor their eggs and learn to make fertiliser for the vegetable garden from\nchicken dung.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The activities\nare integrated with the curriculum and are marked in much the same way, a\nteacher explains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The school has\nalso selected a group of students to host a 15-minute radio programme that\u2019s\nbroadcast around the school before lunch every day to raise awareness about\nsafe food and organic agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lahu\nand Akha girls tend to their morning glory at Ban Ruam Jai school.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Ban Pana Sawan\nand Ban Ruam Jai schools are both successful examples of the Dek Doi Kin Dee\nproject, says Juthamas Rajchaprasit, the project director.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The programme\nwas initiated by the Hill Area and Community Development Foundation (HACDF), a\nnon-profit development organisation that works with hilltribe people in\nNorthern Thailand. Launched in 2015, it has so far been implemented in 33\nschools in the four districts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The program,\nwhich came to an end last month, was funded by the Thai Health Promotion\nFoundation (ThaiHealth) and divided into four year-long phases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For the first\nthree years, the project promoted healthy eating habits among students but this\nyear, the focus was on making the students move more and frequently change\nposition to counter the sedentary lifestyle that plagues all schoolchildren\nface by providing them with physical activity relevant to their lifestyles,\nJuthamas explains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Hilltribe\nstudents usually study from 8am to 8pm, going from their lessons to Chinese\nclasses after school. That means there is little time for exercise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The idea is to\nintegrate hill tribe sports or dancing as part of their daily classes so that\nthey are on their feet and moving every 15 minutes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOver the four\nyears, the project has built greater understanding among communities, schools\nand children. Most importantly, the students have more physical activities that\nare related to their lifestyles and beliefs,\u201d Juthamas explains, adding that\nshe is hoping for sufficient additional funding to cover another two years of\nimplementation. This, she explains, would allow the project to show the kind of\nsuccess that would turn it into a national policy under the future educational\nsystem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n