: Dealing with the trauma of displacement in The Gambia #IndiaNEWS #International Thousands of Senegalese have been forced to flee their homes and seek refuge in The Gambia, after clashes broke out

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Dealing with the trauma of displacement in The Gambia #IndiaNEWS #International
Thousands of Senegalese have been forced to flee their homes and seek refuge in The Gambia, after clashes broke out earlier this year, in parts of Senegal occupied by separatists. The UN is providing psychological support for many of those displaced, who are coping with the fact that a return home is an uncertain prospect.





When conflict broke out in Kaddy’s Senegalese village in early April, she was forced to leave her belongings behind to save her family. “We lost everything. When we left, we could not take anything with us. Our animals, our food; everything was destroyed in the fighting. �
Together with her husband and seven children, Kaddy fled north to The Gambia, eventually finding her way to a small village in Janack district, in an area popularly known as ‘Foni’.
Having left with nothing, Kaddy and her family had to rely on the hospitality of the local community for food and shelter. “We feel like a burden to the other communities helping us,� Kaddy laments. “We feel ashamed to be ‘taken care of’, but we have no choice. �
Kaddy is among thousands of Senegalese forced to flee to The Gambia, according to the countrys National Disaster Management Agency, after fighting broke out along the Gambian-Senegalese border, in territory occupied by the separatist Movement of Democratic Forces of Casamance (MFDC).
An additional 6,200 Gambians have been internally displaced, with another 8,500 affected in host communities – according to The Gambia’s National Disaster Management Agency – by the conflict, which dates back four decades.






IOM/Robert Kovacs
Many Gambians living in Senegal have also been affected. Fatou left her home behind with nothing but her family and the clothes on her back.


Raising awareness of post-traumatic stress
Recognizing the significant impact of the conflict on the well-being of displaced persons, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) mobilized its expertise in providing mental health and psychosocial support. In collaboration with the Supportive Activists Foundation, IOM deployed a mobile psychosocial team – consisting of a psychologist, two social workers, an educator, and a community mobilizer – to provide direct services to the affected populations.
One key approach being employed by the mobile team is psychoeducation, where volunteers meet with and engage communities to discuss mental health issues and possible signs and symptoms of stress. “The purpose is to raise awareness about the experiences of individuals who have gone through post-traumatic stress or have been negatively affected due to the change of environment brought by the crisis,� said Solomon Correa, Supportive Activists Foundation Managing Director.

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