Catalysts for Social Action (CSA), in collaboration with A Future for Every Child (AFEC) and UNICEF, on Monday, hosted Ahvaan, a national conference aimed at uniting stakeholders to enhance the aftercare ecosystem.

Aftercare services support young individuals leaving institutional care at 18, providing education, vocational training, mentorship, psychosocial support, housing, and life skills. However, according to CSA only a small fraction of care leavers are aware of these services and access comprehensive aftercare programs.

CSA’s Aftercare Programme, operational in five states and over 60 districts, has supported 2,500 care leavers. “Our programme, with an annual enrolment exceeding 600, is one of the largest in the country,” said Vipul Jain, Co-Founder of CSA. “Through this conference, we hope to share our learnings and drive collaborative action.”

A UNICEF representative addressed policy challenges, with Sanjay Singh, Chief of Field Office, UNICEF Maharashtra, stating: “UNICEF India’s #3Cs4EveryChild approach—Convene, Converge, and Catalyse—aims to empower care leavers and drive collective action.”

The conference featured three panel discussions: Voice of Care Leavers, highlighting challenges and awareness needs; Convergence and Partnerships, focusing on collaboration for a stronger ecosystem; and Mission 2030, addressing nationwide scalability of aftercare services.

Government functionaries from Karnataka, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, and Maharashtra also shared insights on implementation. Moreover, two key papers were released: Effective, Scalable Aftercare Models by Gita Gopal, Co-Founder of AFEC, and From Strategy to Implementation by CSA.