Scouts’ Day in Argentina Date in the current year: September 5, 2024

The first Scouts in Argentina were Anglo-Argentine students who met with the founder of the Scout Movement Robert Baden-Powell in 1909 during his trip to South America, which included visiting Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina, and Chile.

The Scouting movement in Argentina was officially founded in 1912 by Francisco Moreno, a prominent Argentine explorer and academic, after the publication of the Spanish translation of Robert Baden-Powell’s handbook entitled Scouting for Boys, which is sometimes referred to as the “Bible of Scouting”.

In 1917, President of Argentina Hipólito Yrigoyen issued a decree recognizing the Argentine Boy Scout Association as a national institution. In 1922, the National Institution of Argentine Scouting became one of the founding members of the World Organization of the Scout Movement.

Over the following years, other Scout organizations emerged in Argentina. One of them was the Union Scouts Católicos Argentinos, sponsored by the Catholic Church. It was formally institutionalized in 1937, although Catholic Scout groups had been active since the 1920s.

In 1996, the National Institution of Argentine Scouting and the Union Scouts Católicos Argentinos merged to form Scouts de Argentina, which is currently the biggest Scout organization in the country, as well as Argentina’s official representative in the World Organization of the Scout Movement. Twenty years after the merger, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of La Plata withdrew its sponsorship of Scouts de Argentina, citing the organization’s deviation from Christian values as the reason.

As of 2020, Scouts de Argentina had over 75,000 members aged 7 to 21 in four branches: Manada (Cub Scouts, ages 7 to 11), Unidad (Scouts, ages 11 to 14), Caminantes (Explorer Scouts, ages 14 to 17), and Rovers (ages 17 to 21). The organization is open to both boys and girls. It focuses on informal education, offering programs that help Argentine Scouts to fully realize their physical, intellectual, social, and spiritual potential.

Scouts de Argentina isn’t the only Scout organization in the country. Other organizations that use the Scout method in Argentina include Asociación Guías Argentinas, Scouts y Guías Adultos de Argentina, Coordinación De Asociaciones Diocesanas De Scouts Católicos Argentinos, Organization of Russian Young Pathfinders, Hashomer Hatzair Buenos Aires, and more.

On September 5, Argentine Scouts and Guides celebrate Scouts’ Day, also known as Scout and Good Action Day. It aims to raise the visibility of the Scout movement and highlight its contribution to the development of young people and society. On the occasion of the holiday, Scouts take part in various charity events, for example, collect food for the homeless or donations for children’s hospitals.