Making the Most of Reintegration
Our goal was to develop a report on current socioeconomic conditions in Uganda as well as existing programs designed to improve mental health, provide vocational training, and increase opportunities for participation and increase earning potential in the agricultural sector to improve the lives of Former Child Soldiers (FCS) in Lira, Uganda.
JaeHyun Kim
Youngmin Song
Chingis Toregeldin
Michael Veglucci
Overview
This project builds on the previously established relationship between CIPA and GLI, which began in Fall 2015, with research on the history of FCS in Lira and included thirty-seven interviews of
FCS conducted by GLI staff, colleagues from Makerere University, and CIPA students in January 2016. Our key research tasks include:
Analyzing 37 FCS interviews conducted by the previous capstone team.
Developing a literature review of existing programs designed to improve the mental health, vocational training, and opportunities for agricultural development participation of former child soldiers in and around Lira.
Developing surveys for community members to gauge the ir perception of FCS. Analyzing existing and potential employment opportunities for FCS.
Developing recommendations regarding existing former child soldier rehabilitation programs that GLI could potentially partner with.
With extensive research about the history of FCS, GLI is looking to create opportunities for change and develop social impact initiatives for FCS. GLI's mission is to educate students and community leaders on innovative approaches to international development and empower awareness, collaboration, conversations and personal growth. GLI's focus of listen, think, act has guided CIPA's research in developing recommendations to improve the lives and socioeconomics of FCS.
Our team focused on three critical areas, mental health, vocational training, and agricultural opportunities which we have determined to be essential elements for improving opportunities for FCS.
First, our analysis of the thirty-seven FCS interviews conducted in January 2016 offered our team significant insight into the perspectives of FCS. Nearly 46% of FCS interviewed stated that they feel unwelcomed by their community, demonstrating a possible need for better reintegration programs. However, our team does not have data on the feelings of community members to confirm whether the FCS's perceived sense of unwelcome reflects the true feeling of community members. Additionally, all FCS interviewed are interested in being involved with future programs designed to deliver support, and the top two desired types of support for both male and female FCS are financial assistance and skills training.
Early in our research, through narrative interviews and analysis of Lira's employment sector, it became apparent that the agricultural sector represents a significant opportunity with room for growth for FCS. Crop yield only reaches 30% of capacity when compared to research station yields in the area; there is little access to yield processing which significantly increases the value of marketed crops. Only 5% of the Gulu population has access to an automobile or motorcycle, with likely similar statistics for Lira, leaving little capacity for excess yields to reach potential markets. These challenges offer significant opportunities for programs to improve the capacity of the agricultural sector to improve yields, increase processing, and increase marketing, all of which could create training and employment opportunities for FCS in the agricultural sector.
Out of the 74 governmental and private vocational programs in Uganda, only six operate in Lira and Gulu. Only one of the six specializes in the vocational training of vulnerable classes, such as FCS and the disabled. The most striking finding of vocational training in Lira is that none of it is focused on improving agricultural skills even though the agricultural sector accounts for over 84% of employment in the area. The lack of government vocational programs focused on agricultural skill development should be addressed to improve the lives and socioeconomics of FCS.
