Thailand

In 2022, Solveig Kristina Frivold, the mental health coordinator for HimalPartner in East Asia, became engaged with organizing the start-up of ICDP in Thailand. Close ties were established with ICDP in Nepal. It was agreed, that on behalf of ICDP international, a team of trainers from ECEC/ ICDP Nepal will start the process of training, with the aim of forming a team of facilitators in Thailand.

The first workshop was conducted in September and the second was held in October 2022. Participants included 13 professionals who were selected from different local organizations and after the workshops they conducted 8 ICDP meetings with different groups of caregivers: there was one Burmese speaking group of caregivers who attended the ICDP course in Mae Sot; in Bangkok there were 2 Thai speaking caregiver groups, and two were held in Chiang Mai. There was also one English speaking group of caregivers and they were trained in Chiang Mai. ICDP materials were translated into Thai and Burmese languages.

An ICDP committee was established who forged links with other local organizations. First steps were undertaken aimed at forming ICDP Thailand in 2023.

Sponsorship for the initial training came from HimalPartner but later, when the enthusiasm for the programme grew, some of the participants reached out to their own churches and secured funding for the remainder of the facilitator level training. The additional funding received came from The Evangelical Covenant Church, Illinois and University Covenant Church in Davis, California.

View this brief video featuring ICDP Thailand. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F2xlOmDaGbU