Planning for trainings

It’s full speed at work and lots need to be done. It’s fun and I’m enjoying being here. It’s very clear that an awareness of community-based psychosocial support was not in place in the first months of the humanitarian assistance. Now is the time and challenge to build capacity in the communities. We are increasing awareness and knowledge about community-based psychosocial support. The partners seem to be very happy about getting further support.

Together with local partners, Sudhanshu, Erkingul and I are now planning trainings during the next couple of weeks. Already next week we will start with a one day training for managers and persons in key functions with the partners. That will be a basic training in community-based psychosocial support and staff support. After the training the participants will then identify key persons in the communities where they work for another training and that will also be a one day basic training for community counsellors in community-based psychosocial support and staff support.

We are going to perform two trainings for UNICEF, since they have asked that such trainings for their cluster members are very much needed, especially to male community leaders. We have responded positively to conduct such trainings as a gesture of good will and cooperation.

We are also planning for a special training in basic community-based psychosocial support for staff and volunteers working at women centres, with children also inviting people working with disabled,

Two trainings in community-based psychosocial support and staff support will be for public officers; officials within the fields of health, education, social and welfare, finance, police, military and administration.

What makes work difficult is that the situation is tense and that there is a lack of crisis awareness and emergency preparedness. Many staff members and volunteers with partners organizations live with high levels of stress, frustration and exhaustion after several months of hard work of humanitarian emergency response. People also have difficult seeing into the future; they do not know how it looks like. Will it be peaceful or will new conflicts arise.

I enjoy working with Sudanshu and Erkingul. Sudhanshu is very experienced, skilled with lots of routine and Erkingul is very cooperative. But most important is that we have fun.