Following the insights gained from Adjust for Me 2024, it became evident that while awareness of toxic masculinity and Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) is a growing concern, a profound gap remained which is the holistic support for survivors. The A4M26 project phase II is born from this opportunity for transformation.
To see our dream of healing come true, we took a step forward by training 20 Community Healing Advocates across Ntarinkon, Nitob II, Mulang, and Ntambag. “We believe that the gate way to community healing is through community members themselves”. This cohort had a blend of all community members (Women, Men, youth’s leaders, traditional councilors, men leaders, religious administrators, women leaders) who are now equipped to lead a resilient, gender-equitable community centered on bodily autonomy, healing, and restorative justice.
Incorporating Local Wisdom to Meets Psychological First Aid, the community healers moved beyond theory into deep, participatory action and culturally owned methods to healing, identifying the gendered roles within community structures that perpetuate GBV using different lens such as the cultural lens and societal imposed rules giving room for clear identification of both harmful practices to be dismantled and protective cultural values to be amplified.
Digging and dismantling social harmful barriers, The advocates identified powerful local pillars of support as a strategy to communal healing including:
Leveraging Njangi groups and church fellowships.
Utilizing traditional storytelling and guidance from elders.
Integrating meditation, traditional markings, and the symbolic “use of songs and instrument” to foster communal peace and relieve.
While community members shared their cultural means it was equally worth a while for them to master Psychological First Aid (PFA) where they could recognize subtle signs of distress and provide immediate, non-intrusive support rooted in empathy, the path to justice and recovery.
We know you would be wondering how they would Navigate the Path to Recovery, worry no more because the community healers now have a deep dive in the technicalities of survivor-centered care by practicing the art of active listening, learning to create a safe “container” for a survivor’s story without judgment. As a healer it is important to note that “you equally need healing too” hence community healers are encouraged to seek help always
Bridging the gap between traditional healing methods and modern psychological tools, these 20 advocates are not just “helpers”, they are the architects of a safer, more accountable community, advocates that document, track, and refer cases with the highest standards of confidentiality and ethics.
“At A4M26, we believe that affirming a survivor’s right to health and positive sexual experiences starts with a community that knows how to heal its own.” COMAGEND
