Masaka District Local Government Gender Based Violence (GBV) Rehabilitation and Advice Center

managed
Funded
Supported
By Okoa Refuge

a little bit of background…

Nyendo Town, located in Masaka District in the central region of Uganda, is widely known across the country as a place of crime, violence, abuse, and human trafficking. Due to its proximity to Kampala and its location along the main highway that stretches from the capital city of Kampala to the countries of Rwanda, Tanzania and Democratic Republic of Congo, it has become a stopping place for many people, and it has become largely known for its corruption.

what does Okoa’s program look like?

• Holistic and individualized care plans for every victim

• A survivor-first approach to healing and care

• A program that understands that healing must occur on many levels: emotional, mental, physical and spiritual

• A culture that encourages mediation and family reunification

• A team that fights for justice within the courts when necessary

• A program & team that doesn’t back away from difficult cases or cower to corrupt officials but stands up for survivors

partnership with okoa…

Recently, when the contract ended with an organization that ran a local shelter for GBV and domestic abuse, the government requested that Okoa take over the project in an effort to ensure that vital services are not lost for the people of Masaka District.

There is a vicious cycle that needs to be broken. The Coronavirus pandemic caused increased stress at home, and therefore, rates of domestic abuse and child abuse are rapidly rising. There is need for a strong intervention and for these innocent victims to have a place of refuge to run to where they will receive all of the necessary treatments, medication and legal counsel in order to reintegrate back into society in a healthy way.

THE NEED

The estimated need for operating a shelter is $60,000 a year/$5,000 a month. This covers the running of the shelter, the salaries of caretakers, social workers, counselors, a legal team and transport costs. This enables us to shelter and give legal support to hundreds of victims each year.

We invite you to come along side us and provide financial support to help us ensure that we have the $60,000 needed each year to properly run and staff the Gender-Based Violence Center.

Individuals are currently traveling long distances and coming from various communities to receive support and shelter at our two GBV Shelters. The feedback we’ve received from our neighbors and program participants is that the need is great for the services we provide at the shelter.

We are continuing to do our best to provide support to neighboring communities, and one of the ways we can do this is by building and opening more GBV Shelters. The average cost of constructing a GBV facility is currently $75,000. We invite you to prayerfully consider partnering with us to build another GBV Shelter to support more survivors.