Protection project for refugees and asylum seekers

KAALO Refugees and Asylum Seekers Center.

Annually, there is extension of the protection project for refugees and asylum seekers funded by our partner UNHCR and implemented by KAALO Relief and Development since 2007.

Time frame of the project: 1st Jan 2012 to 31st Dec 2012

Project Goal and Objectives 

This project aims to strengthen the protection framework for refugees and asylum seekers in Garowe and Bosasso, and simultaneously ensure adequate delivery of essential humanitarian assistance by addressing the following existing problems.

  •  Legal protection of refugees and asylum seekers, in particular through legal counseling and legal representation.
  • Establishment of clear legal referral mechanisms to ensure effective collaboration between KAALO and referring agencies and quick response mechanisms.
  •  Ensure special arrangements for protection and care for separated or unaccompanied children ensuring respect for individual rights and that the best interests of the child are met.
  • Detention centre monitoring to preclude and/ or respond to cases of arbitrary arrest, ensuring timely and effective response to the needs of refugees and asylum seekers in detention.
  • Training of law enforcement officers, judiciary and other relevant stakeholders on the rights and obligations of refugees and asylum seekers, basic human rights standards and relevant human rights documents.
  •  Community awareness-raising among refugee and asylum seekers on the rights and obligations of the refugee and asylum seeker community in Puntland.

 Target beneficiaries

This project will benefit refugees and asylum seekers in Garowe and Bosasso, project beneficiary consists primarily of Ethiopian nationals.  The majority of Ethiopian refugees and asylum seekers are of Oromo ethnicity, with a few individuals originating from the Ogaden, Amhara and Tigre ethnic groups. Also the local communities and government officers are the project beneficiaries.

The project activities include:

  • Capacity development for civil society and government relevant departments for monitoring and supporting reduction in arbitrary detention for persons of concern.
  • Training for local lawyers, legal counselors, as well as other concerned actors
  • Regular monitoring of and visiting detention centers
  • Training for custodial crops and police
  • Collaborate with local lawyers to provide support to legal cases
  • Legal counseling and legal representation to refugees and asylum seekers
  • Providing information on legal referral mechanisms to PoCs.
  • Referral to other services providers for refugees and asylum seekers such as health facilities, education, livelihood opportunities and other protection information departments.
  • Counseling and advisory services for the detainees to know about their rights.
  • Community peace-building initiatives bringing together refugee and asylum seekers and host communities to discuss traditional conflict resolution.
  • Meeting with community elders and refugee/ asylum seekers to discuss more about conflict resolution methods.
  • Support host and asylum seekers community to establish 15 steering committees from PoC and hosts to oversee and follow up conflict and dispute cases.
  • Advocate for continuous support through coordinating meetings among all governmental agencies and local and international NGOs.
  • Awareness rising for host community on setting up their priority and identifying gaps to recommend improvement through participatory approach.Provide capacity building for refugees/asylum seekers and host community committee through training workshops in order fulfill and understand their roles and responsibilities and to cement peaceful coexistence among host and asylum seekers.
  • Forum sessions for community awareness raising campaigns and community collaborations.

Protection project Coordinator

Abdulkadir Ahmed Warsame

unicaw@gmail.com

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Puntland Youth for Peace Building & Democracy

Puntland youth for peace building-Group photo

This project has been Funding by National Endowment for Democracy and implemented by Kaalo Relief and Development.

Time frame of the project: from 1st October 2011 – 31st January 2012.

Introduction

The capacity building project design is based on the belief that young people are the best resource for promoting their development, and that they must be both architects and agents in meeting the challenges and solving the problems faced in Puntland. The project will to empower the youth by placing them in a variety of enabling conditions and provide them with the necessary tools and training to develop them to become drivers of peace building and democracy. This will be done by forming a core group of TOT youth trainers who are committed to promoting youth capacity in advocating for peace, democracy human rights and youth development.

These youth trainers will be selected from the seven regions of Puntland State (Sool/Sanag/Bari/Mudug/Nugal/Karkaar/ Ayn ) and will participate in institutional  capacity building, human rights and peace and democracy advocacy trainings with focus empowering youth to be agents for peace and democracy transformation.

The Projects needs analysis workshop, orientation and training for trainers programmes and structured volunteer projects to promote youth sensitization on their rights and inspire them to play their role in peace building and democracy sufficiently.

The project is implementing by KAALO Relief & development Organization in partnership with National Endowment for Democracy (NED) .

THE Over All Objective of the project is to consolidate principles of participatory democracy and the respect of human rights in Puntland by strengthening the ability of its youth to actively participate and engage in their own communities.

This quarterly report highlights the activities conducted during this reporting period from 1st October 2011 to 31st January 2012.

Planned Activities

  1. conducting TOT in Human Rights for 30 youth umbrellas in Puntland
  2. conducting Peace Building Training for 30 youth umbrellas in Puntland

The specific objectives of the training were:

  1. To explore the principles, policies and practice underpinning human rights based development.
  2.  To enhance the participant’s skills in programming on this basis through providing a supportive   environment in which both development and human rights activists can pool learning to adapt existing skills.
  3. To raise participant’s self-awareness in terms of behavior, attitudes and values in undertaking human rights based development. Participants are facilitated in approaching their own human rights trainings to enhance skills in training facilitation, teamwork, building relationships, communication, advocacy and designing strategic partnerships.

Participants gained sufficient knowledge in human rights and approaches of training others in human rights. Each umbrella developed a work plan to train other members in human rights, as they pledged to organize debates on human rights and democracy promotion via the media in Puntland.

Objectives:

  • To define conflict and understand how to apply conflict analysis tools
  • To understand the role of peacemakers and name qualities and skills that are required for effective and positive leadership
  • To assess own leadership qualities and identity areas for improvement
  • To learn skills needed for effective communication with their target audience
  • To understand what “team” and “teamwork” mean, including developing trust when working
  • To use peace building skills—leadership, communication, teamwork, and empowerment skills— to negotiate through a problem
  • To apply the above in designing and implementing strategies to promote peaceful approaches to clan-related conflict.

Saalim Said saalim

Project Manager

Puntland youth for Peace Building

Email: saalimalhadrami@gmail.com

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Emergency Drought Response and Famine Mitigation Project

This livelihood project funded by our partner Diakonia Sweden and implemented KAALO Relief and Development.

Time frame of the project: 1st September 2011 to 28 February 2012.

Currently Somalia is experiencing the impact of worst drought affecting both people and livestock in all parts of Somalia. The drought has been hitting all the horn of African countries of Somalia, Kenya and Ethiopia but Somalia being the worst hit and the situation is desperate. In some parts of Puntland there are areas severely affected by drought where thousands of households lost their livestock.

The main assets of Pastoralists is livestock and depend on livestock for all their basic needs and in many of the worst affected areas people lost their livestock, their economy undermined and faced with food insecurity. Livestock sales are often used to buy grain so the lack of milk and meat has contributed to high malnutrition levels. People’s livelihoods have been decimated.

Project Overall Objective

To prevent malnutrition and famine caused by destitution and starvation due to prolonged conflicts and drought-affected destitute pastoralists and famine IDPs in Humanitarian Emergency (HE) in Nugal region and Mudug region.

Project Specific Objective

The specific objective of the project is to contribute stabilizing food access and nutrition for 600 famine IDPs and drought affected in Humanitarian Emergency (HE).

A widowed mother of 7 children fled to Garowe after her husband was killed in Mogadishu by Al-shabab and she lost her arms. now it is very dificulty to look after her children.

The Criteria for selection of the beneficiaries includes:

  • Disabled people
  • Elderly people
  • New arrivals
  • Very poor

The project supports the communities such as business in such a way that after giving them food and NFIs they use the physical appearance of the people and will minimize the number of beggars in the streets and have been able to look for job. The community after getting jobs and sustainable livelihood they will have access to health and education services.

The project has no negative impact on the environment and it’s expected that it may contribute to peace in that if people who are in need of food and money are provided with Something they may stop haunting for other peoples wealth in a bid to fight against their poverty and hunger.

Important assumptions used during project formulation; generally the security of Puntland is good and there was no any negative   assumption that could be highlighted to risk for the Project.

Target Locations:

  1. 200 household in Burtinle IDPs settlement district, Nugal Region
  2. 100 household in Jawle IDP camp and Other All IDPs Camp in Garowe District, Nugal Region
  3. 200 household in Budunbuto, Barwayn, Baq-baq, usgure, Haji-kheyr under  Dangorayo District, Nugal Region
  4. 100 household Halaboqad IDPs Camp in Galkio District, Mudug region.

In generally, 200 household who affected drought and 400 displaced communities benefited this project on the food and non-food -items distribution.

 Food and non-food items distributed to the communities: 

Each household distributed the fallowing food items and non-food items:

Food items

  1. Rice
  2. Flour
  3. Sugar
  4. Food oil

 None items food-NFIs

  1.  Blankets
  2. Mosquito nets
  3. Plastic sheets

Livelihood project Manager

Nour Shire Osman

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Community-based HIV prevention & stigma reduction project under the global fund round 8 HIV grant

Community-Based HIV prevention & Stigma reduction project under the global fund round 8 HIV grant through IOM-International Organization for Migration:

Implemented by KAALO Relief and Development

photo Group for outreach training

Overall Project Goal is Halting and reversing the spread, and reducing the impact of HIV in Puntland Zones particularly Nugal and mudug Regions.

Project Objectives are the following on the below:

1.  To increase awareness of key affected populations and vulnerable and other groups,

2.  To increase the capacity of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to be better able to coordinate and address HIV and AIDS issues activities.

Projection location: Puntland Zone mainly in Garowe, Galkaio Burtile and Tukaraq.

Beneficiary Population of the project: (MARPs) the most-at-risk people living in Puntland (sex workers, truck drive, tea and khat seller, uniformed services.

The project targeted beneficiaries from various vulnerable people such as Sex worker, Tea seller, khat seller and uniformed services.

Time frame of the project: from April 15th to November 2011

Project Description

The project of community-based HIV prevention and stigma reduction under the global fund round 8 HIV grant project which is implemented by KAALO Relief & Development in Puntland State of Somalia and particularly Nugal and Mudug regions. The project has been funded by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) as sub-recipient under the global fund round 8 HIV grant project.

The project was designed to increase awareness of key affected populations and vulnerable women and other groups such as most at risk peoples (MARPs) targeting truck drivers, khat/tea sellers, female sex workers, uniformed services, military camps and as well the PLHIV in Nugal and Mugug Region.

The situation of the HIV/AIDS in Punt land is currently deteriorating and its rate is gradually increasing, it causes the below steps:

  1. Low level of awareness-raising on STIs or HIV/AIDS in the MARPs.
  2. Inadequate information of HIV as well as cultural factors or misperception on HIV. Some people believe that HIV/STI      is the curses from Allah.
  3. Trust the disease come from the animal  not from the STI,
  4. The pirates spread the HIV
  5. The high occurrence of other sexually transmitted diseases (STD’s) in Punt land pretences an additional risk      factor for spreading HIV.
  6. Female Khat/tea sellers are vulnerable to the sexual violence as well as resorting to the informal sex work.
  7. Truck drivers have a limited access to STI information and treatment on HIV/AIDS
  8. Condom use is power full protection but only by Doctors classified as medical responsible way.
  9. A couple’s sexual behaviour is important   specifically the types of sexual.

The objects of the training underlining the following:

1.  Increase awareness to protect HIV

2.  Promote the capacity of MARPS Group such as Truck drivers and Khat,/ tea sellers to be aware of the STI

3.  Learn the participants the signs and symptoms of the HIV

4.  Reduce the stigma of PLWHA.

5.  Disseminate the risk of HIV in the community

Activities that KAALO Relief & Development implemented for 2011 such as:

  1. Preparation of Outreach sessions action      plan.
  2. Preparation of training logistics      (training materials, venue, refreshment/meals orders).
  3. Conducted MARPs outreach training sessions for Burtinle truck drivers of 25      participants at Nasteex women Organization.
  4. Conducted outreach MARPs 25 female Khat and Tea sellers in Garowe at KAALO      Conference hall).
  5. Recruitment of 4 mentors for four small CSO on organizational capacity development.
  6. Implementation of mentoring for 4 small CSOs (SYSA, SOSCO,SWA and NOW) on organizational      capacity development by recruited mentors under the community based HIV prevention and stigma reduction project.
  7. Implementation and conducted awareness raising training for 240 MARPs( most at risk populations) including Tea      seller, Khat sellers , unformed services and sex workers. KAALO vividly      participated in preparation of World AIDS-day and contributed $10100(one      thousand and one hundred USD)
  8. KAALO was to  conduct three quarterly review meetings including round 8 phase 1 year3      activities, but none of the reviews was conducted due to their planned      schedule because of delay from PAC ( Puntland AIDS commission). After that      IOM and KAALO discussed the issue and agreed to extend 40 days of non-cost      extension for KAALO to carry out the activities. During the extended time KAALO provided financial support to 6 LNGOs who participated in the annual      review meeting held at Rugsan-square meeting Hall used as venue on      21/12/2011. The meeting was arranged by PAC.These 6 LNGOs representatives      came from Bosasso, Galkayo, Badhan and Gardo.

CAPACITY BUILDING TRAINING FOR SMALL NGOS IN PUNTLAND

The overall objectives of capacity building for small NGOs :

The overall objective of Capacity Development Training on Community Based HIV prevention and Stigma Reduction of Global Fund Round 8 HIV Grant Project. Trainees will have upgraded capacity and accessibility of understanding, preventing & reducing HIV/Stigma.

Topic to be covered during the capacity development Training:

  1. Proposal and report writing
  2. Project cycle Management
  3. Communication skills
  4. Financial management and Auditing
  5. Database Base Management
  6. Organizational development
  7. Knowledge management
  8. Facilitation skills
  9. Evaluation and assessment skills

Evaluation method used and results

  • Practical learning evaluation tools
  • Daily recap and 3-daily short evaluation on lesson learned and not learned
  • Stick-it yellow paper positive-negative aspects/ elements of training
  • Feedback moments and forms
  • Action plans, and
  • Follow-up to training; after the training finishes

Between 26th of October and 5th of October 2011 a 10-day capacity development training was conducted for 4 local Puntland NGOs, namely SYSA, NOW, SWA and SOSCO in Garowe. The training was officially organized under the auspices of KAALO Relief and Development NGO based in Garowe and the training was given by Ms Sahra Ahmed Koshin of Sahra Consultancy Inc www.sahraconsultancy.com &Mohamed Said Farah.

During the training, the trainers created a Google group documents for easier sharing of documents and communication. The groups name is PCM training for Puntland NGOs and their link is pcm-training-pl-ngos@googlegroups.com

The trainers have put all the training documents on the group forum and all of the participants are members and already sharing resources and communicating with one another. Each day of the 10-day training program, the trainers with the assistance of the co-facilitator would begin the day with a recap and question and answer session. After 3 days a short evaluation was conducted to evaluate the learning capacity of the participants. The training workshop took place in Kaalo NGO office premises.

Each day of the 10-day training program, the trainers with the assistance of the co-facilitator would begin the day with a recap and question and answer session. After 3 days a short evaluation was conducted to evaluate the learning capacity of the participants. The training workshop took place in Kaalo NGO office premises.

Recommendations and suggested way forward for mentorship

Overall, the training went very smoothly and was a great successful. The attendance, performance and punctuality of the 12 participants were very good. As we have been directly involved in the training and assessment o the 4 Puntland NGOs and also interacting with them on a daily basis, we recommend the following planning structure for the mentorship.

Maymuna Salad Weyrah

HIV/AIDs Project Manager

KAALO Relief and Development

Garowe, Puntland Somalia.

 

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Shaqodoon Graduation Ceremony

Somali Youth Livelihood program popularly known as Shaqodoon held a graduation ceremony at Puntland state university on Wednesday 20thApril 2011.

Somali Youth Livelihood program (Shaqodoon) is among one of the projects of KAALO Relief and Development, which started early 2010. The project involved training of 190 students for a period of five months and a placement of two months after training.

The project started on May 2010 and collapsed on March 2011. It was divided into three phases, the Phase I, Phase II and Phase III. The first phase which was three month in time was the preparation stage. This stage was mainly concerned with the registration and selection of the 190 students that the project was meant to train and place. The second phase which made up of five months involved the training of the 190 students in both theory and practical. This was between August and December. After training, comes the last but not the least phase which is known by Phase III or the last stage. This stage was the placement stage whereby KAALO successfully managed to place 80% of the students trained to different organizations be it private or Public.

Students of Auto mechanics and Electrical Installations trained form the premises of Nugal Electric Company which was a sub-partner of KAALO Relief and Development organization.

Students of Level one were provided with $30 dollars per month for motivation purpose while students of Level II and III were each given $4 after every month for transportation. Upon the completion of the training students were provided with certificate of course completion.

The ceremony started at 9:00 in the morning whereby some invited guests addressed the crowd that composed of the graduating students, trainers, and some other invited individuals. The ceremony was opened with a Quranic verse and thereafter all the participants including the students were welcome.

The project manager took the floor and briefed the participants on the project, among the things he provided more clarifications were the project timeframe, number of students trained, placed and employed.

The project manager invited KAALO executive Director and PSU President to congratulate the graduating students at the same time encourage them to pursue more knowledge and hence achieve in life. The executive director in turn invited the guest of honor the Minister of Commerce and industry to take the floor and give motivational speech to the students.

Before the minister and other high ranking delegates spoke, some students stood before the mass and talked about their feeling towards the ceremony and the long journey of training, many students were heard appreciating KAALO, PSU and EDC the implementing and supporting organizations respectively. Some students praised the executive Director of KAALO and PSU president, Mohamoud Sheikh Haid calling him by names such as “The father of Education” “The father of the Youth” and many other motivational words.

Eventually some students were issued with certificates, due to time the rest were told to collect their certificates from PSU registrar’s office.

The ceremony ended cheerfully and joyfully around 12:00pm and was adjourned by KAALO executive director mohamud Hamid Mohamed.

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