Lions Quest Skills for Adolescence program in Croatia

3-7 July 2023, Lika-Senj County, Croatia: In partnership with Lions Clubs International Foundation, UNODC in cooperation with the Education and Teacher Training Agency of Croatia organized two trainings on the Lions Quest Skills for Adolescence (LQSFA) program for 150 subject teachers and professional associates in primary schools in the Lika-Senj County.

The LQSFA programme is an effective evidence-based prevention programme for young people aimed to help them develop various social emotional skills, take responsibility, communicate effectively, make healthy decisions and resist substance abuse.

Additionally, a meeting was organized with the Deputy Prefect of the County, 12 school directors (out of 15), the Lions Club Croatia and UNODC. UNODC presented the ongoing efforts of the LQSFA program implementation in the country acknowledging the positive results obtained to date while the country representative of the Lions Club informed about the foundation’s role and objectives as well as the benefits for students and teachers, who participated with printing manuals and workbooks for all students and teachers.

The LQSFA programme was initially launched in South-Eastern Europe in 2014 and gradually expanded to Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia and Croatia reaching more than 10,500 students in over 210 elementary schools across the region. Following a strict evidence-based implementation modality, the programme proved to be effective and showed encouraging results in substance use reduction, the intention to use drugs and dissuasive effects on the engaged students on substance use in their local environment.