By Shadrach Aziz Kamara
Caritas Sierra Leone (Caritas-SL) has on Friday 10th February 2023, engaged police personnel of the Family Supports Unit (FSU) of the Sierra Leone Police (SLP) on a one day training on Sexual and Gender Based Violence (SGBV) from twenty communities in the Western Rural Area.
The training session focused on psychosocial approaches and Case Management by FSU personnel.
SGBV continues to be a major concern in Sierra Leone, with women and girls being disproportionately affected. The situation is further compounded by a lack of access to justice and limited awareness of hygiene practices.
The training program dealt with topics such as Case Management, the role of police officers in child protection and the role of FSU in combating SGBV.
Kumba Gando, an official of Caritas Freetown, said that the purpose of the training session was to engage FSU personne from twenty (20) communities on psychosocial approaches and Case Management handling mechanisms, adding that, even though they might have undergone similar trainings in the past, however, they want to capacitate them more so that it will serve as a refresher to some of them.
She continued that the view that SGBV survivor cases are not easy to handle, adding that, the training will help them in whatever work they will be doing in relation to survivors within the Western Rural area.
She disclosed that there will be quarterly engagements of FSU personnel, adding that, at the end of the program they are expected to have developed new skills on how to handle SGBV cases.
All of the beneficiaries expressed their commitment to apply the knowledge and skills they gained during the session in their daily work.
Also, they furthered emphasized the importance of working together with other stakeholders to create a more enabling environment for women and girls relating to SGBV.
