Ten years ago, after South Sudan gained its independence from Sudan, the Swiss Academy for Development (SA4D) started working with South Sudanese women in IDP (internally displaced people) camps to help them overcome war-related trauma. The project entitled “Women on the move” was conducted in collaboration with a South Sudanese NGO called Community Psychosocial Support Organisation (CPSO). Since then, the escalation of the civil war, as well as drought and famine, have again forced more than two million South Sudanese people to flee to neighboring countries such as Uganda, which is hosting 40% of them (see unrefugees.org and statista.com). As the project participants as well as CPSO staff had to flee to northern Uganda, the “Women on the Move” project was relocated there and adopted a new focus on women and children.
In an interview, project manager Andrea Wynistorf explained how SA4D and its partner CPSO are committed to providing psychosocial support to South Sudanese refugees in northern Uganda.
Refugees supported by the project suffer from adverse psychosocial effects due to traumatic experiences of war and conflict, which can touch various areas of life. These effects can manifest in post-traumatic stress disorders (PTSD) as well as somatic problems. Repeated memories of stressful experiences, difficulty with concentration, anxiety, irritation and fear, as well as feelings of revenge or guilt are common symptoms. Reported somatic complaints include nightmares, chest pain, weight loss, headaches or chronic fatigue. Trauma-related negative emotions can further lead to outbursts or aggressive behavior in the community, or low self-esteem, isolation, and even suicidal thoughts.
Once the refugees arrive in the camp, the new reality marked by dire living conditions, lack of financial resources, hope and prospects, can further increase the negative effects of conflict-related trauma.
SA4D and its partner CPSO use a sport and play-based approach to help South Sudanese refugees to improve their psychosocial well-being, complemented by professional mental health assistance and counseling. Sports and life skill games are specifically designed to help participants develop effective coping strategies for trauma recovery, build resilience and strengthen interpersonal skills.
The activities engage the participants as a whole, with their body and mind; and are followed by a three-step discussion led by trained psychosocial coaches. The conversation includes a group reflection on the activity, connecting it to real-life personal experience, as well as methods for putting the lessons learned during the game into practice. Participants learn to talk about their experiences and feelings and regain trust and their self-confidence in a fun way. As these activities are also offered to the host community, they contribute to social cohesion and the reduction of possible tensions.
According to Andrea Wynistorf, such an approach has proven to be highly effective for dealing with trauma; SA4D also uses it to develop life skills for violence prevention and conflict transformation. Andrea adds that while many participants have no formal education, relieving stress, fear and anger as well as allowing informal learning in a playful group setting is an approach that is well suited to restore a sense of normalcy and build essential life skills for the future.
Another success factor lies in the fact that all activities are held in a – physically, emotionally and socially – safe space. The psychosocial experts of the implementing partner organization are refugees themselves. As a result, there is a high level of trust and mutual understanding during the sessions. According to several counselors of CPSO, working in the field of psychosocial assistance is a way to nurture their own healing process.
