By Natsuki Iida | Member of Advocacy Team
To all of you who have always supported us, here is the latest report on the Uganda Child Soldier Project!
Background: Since 2005, Terra Renaissance has been implementing social reintegration support for vulnerable individuals in Northern Uganda's Gulu District, including former child soldiers, young people born in conflict zones, and the most impoverished.
Three months have passed since the reintegration training for the 12th group of beneficiaries.
Many former child soldiers, even after returning home, carry anxieties like "Will I be detained, arrested, killed, or rejected by my community...?". They started their training with these anxieties.
There was a noticeable tension among the students in the early days. However, as they began attending our facility and engaging in the program, their anxieties have significantly eased. Now, they are finding joy in the training, a testament to the positive impact of the reintegration program.
Every day, the beneficiaries, along with their young children (infants and toddlers), participate in training at the facility. They also share lunch and casual conversations together at the facility.
Through this daily interaction, they have been opening up to our staff. Those who were initially hesitant to connect are now displaying brighter expressions. Just as with previous beneficiaries, we're seeing more and more smiles during training sessions.
As with the previous group of beneficiaries, the 12th group of beneficiaries is participating in tailoring and wood carpentry training.
First, the tailoring class. Although the training is still in its early stages, it was impressive to see them steadily acquiring skills. The young man in the photo above has already become able to make a simple design bag, and he happily said to me, "Look at this! Take a picture of me!"
Next, the carpentry training. This class is mainly composed of former child soldiers from Uganda. They are gradually trying their hand at practical furniture making, but this week was mainly focused on classroom lectures.
While there are also fun scenes with smiles in furniture making, on this day they were desperately copying the furniture drawings sketched by the instructor on the blackboard into their notebooks.
One of our goals is to support the trainees achieve financial independence by securing income through the skills acquired in vocational training.
However, we believe that it is not only important to increase their income, but also for them to maintain connections with society and live in cooperation with others after they return to their communities. To this end, we hold "peace education" classes every Friday. The topics covered are diverse, including working with peers to solve problems and anger management.
The 12th group of beneficiaries has shown a marked improvement in their demeanor and overall attitude since the start of their training. Their faces are brighter, and their spirits are lifted.
While challenges, problems, and difficulties are undoubtedly ahead, we are dedicated to supporting them as they continue to develop their skills at their own pace.
We appreciate your continued support.
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