CCVS-Uganda is part of the overarching research centre, CCVS-International. CCVS-International is an interuniversity research centre, started in 2008 to conduct research on support for and wellbeing of formerly abducted children and war-affected children and their communities in Lira District. Three Belgian universities gave form to and took up the direction of this centre: Ghent University with Professor Dr. Ilse Derluyn, Vrije Universiteit Brussel with Professor Dr. Gerrit Loots, and the University of Leuven with Professor Dr. Lucia De Haene.
CCVS-International’s activities are structured around three central axes which are closely related to one another:
- Research studying the psychosocial wellbeing of persons living in vulnerable situations in the South. These studies are practice-oriented, which means that the research questions are relevant for practitioners, and that the study results are disseminated as widely as possible.
- Support for persons in vulnerable situations in the South. In particular, two support centres have been established, one in Eastern DRCongo (Bunia) (CCVS-DRCongo) and one in Northern Uganda (Lira) (CCVS-Uganda), where local staff are involved in a range of diverse activities, all aimed at supporting the psychosocial wellbeing of war-affected persons and their contexts
- Dissemination of practices and knowledge, via the organizations of local workshops, publications, website and international conferences and fora.
CCVS-Uganda is currently operating in various communities, schools, health centres and the Mental Health Unit of Lira Regional Referral Hospital. Although our work is mostly outreaching, people are also free to come to our office to access mental health services. Furthermore, our team also contributes to the “Healing Our Wounds” radio programme which is broadcasted by Radio Wa. We aim to provide our services to all persons in need of mental health support irrespective of their ethnicity, religion or other orientations and beliefs. This neutral and open character of our organization has proved to be very important in its operation and acceptance by the various communities and institutions that we work with.
Plot 23, Tom Otim Road, Lira District, Uganda
+256 782 642 205 (Leen De Nutte, Executive Director)
