Lutheran World Federation

Uganda is home to over 900,000 child refugees and asylum seekers. The majority of these children are from South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo, countries that have been plagued by violence for years on end. After watching armed groups ransack their homes, these children often had no choice but to leave everything behind and start over – attempting to rebuild in overcrowded, under-resourced refugee camps miles from their homes.

In the north of the country, the Lutheran World Federation is using support from the Fund to make life a little easier for child refugees. From March 2018 to May 2019, the organisation:

• Increased children’s awareness of child abuse, neglect and early marriage by hosting child-led plays in refugee camps and host communities, all of which were attended by government officials, teachers, community members, child protection actors and other children.
• Through these plays, the Lutheran World Federation empowered children to spread messages on children’s issues to nearly 9,500 people.
• Established Child Rights Clubs alongside school administrators, increasing child-friendly approaches to education and an anonymous reporting system to manage cases of child abuse and exploitation. This reporting system, which was called the Complaints and Response Mechanism, also gave children a way to voice other safety concerns.
• Provided individual services, including age- and gender-appropriate psychosocial support, to 10,800 children.
• Engaged 10,100 children in life-skills sessions, building their ability to earn a sustainable, productive income.