Twice a week, you will find her in the waters of her village, surrounded by excited faces bobbing up and down in the pond. One of the boys gently bumps his head against one of the safety poles in the pond, and they explode in giggles. Seema calls him back. The children line up like Olympic swimmers, and they’re all ready to win gold.

Seema is one of 270 community swimming instructors across the country who have successfully taught over 135,000 children how to swim. These kids can dream to compete professionally, and might even make it, but most importantly — they are safe from drowning.

Drowning is the leading cause of death for children in Bangladesh. From the mossy green ponds across the villages to the mighty rivers surging through the country, the waters of the world’s biggest delta claim approximately 12,000 young lives every year.

Netrokona’s little swim team are safe though, ducking through overhanging branches and gliding towards their imaginary gold medals. Seema watches them intently, equipped with the rescue and first aid skills that she learnt in her ADP club. She’ll finish the lesson and then help them, through training, mentoring and education, to make sure they are making waves out of the pool as well.

Seema is not only making waves in the water, but all throughout her community, empowering young girls and boys to dive in headfirst into whatever they want to be.

Seema was selected by BRAC and UNICEF, and trained on safe swimming lessons by SwimSafe.

There are 9,000 ADP clubs across Bangladesh, providing safe spaces where 300,000 young women are given the chance to be themselves, and the skills to become what they want to be. They learn life skills, social confidence and entrepreneurship, share experiences and build networks. Research has shown that ADP clubs help girls to stay in school, become more financially literate and communicate more confidently. Similar clubs have also been started by BRAC in five other countries; Uganda, Tanzania, South Sudan, Sierra Leone and Tanzania.

This International Youth Day, let’s celebrate what happens when we focus on creating opportunities for the young half of the world’s population. They, after all, have the most vested interest in a better world, because they are the ones who will live in it. Let’s give them a chance, just like Ching, Rabeya and Seema, to kick some goals. There is no doubt that we will all benefit.

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