2022 ANNUAL REPORT

Afghanistan

When the Taliban took over Afghanistan in August 2021, the country faced the onset of a devastating humanitarian crisis. As foreign troops withdrew and the Taliban advanced, people left their homes to seek refuge in safer places, like cities, straining resources already stretched thin.

The Taliban’s increasingly regressive policies towards women and girls – including banning women from working for non-governmental agencies, coupled with the suspension of international aid in 2022 caused a near collapse of the banking system and affected the delivery of humanitarian and development assistance.

Beset by slow growth, extreme poverty, decades of conflict, climate change, and the impact of COVID-19, Afghanistan descended into the grips of one of the world’s worst humanitarian disasters, with a resounding two-thirds of the country facing hunger and food insecurity.

Despite these challenges, in 2022 War Child delivered aid through interventions in immediate humanitarian response, education and child protection, women’s livelihoods, and access to justice.

To respond to the critical need for children’s access to education, War Child established temporary learning spaces and community-based education classes. We also hired and trained teachers to work in these spaces. In addition, the project focused on the prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse by ensuring that boys and girls, teachers, and parents were protected from being sexually exploited and abused by engaging with and strengthening existing community-based protection systems.

In the aftermath of a 5.9-magnitude earthquake which shook southeast Afghanistan on 22 June 2022 and caused extensive casualties and damage throughout the already vulnerable and undeveloped districts of Paktika and Khost provinces, War Child responded by providing emergency response cash assistance to families for essential household items such as blankets, containers for water, cooking items and soap, and to help rebuild their livelihoods.

War Child also worked with women and girls from some of the most vulnerable families affected by the humanitarian crisis – including survivors of gender-based violence and women with children at risk of violence, exploitation, and abuse such as child labour and trafficking – helping them to earn an income through micro-businesses to help address their food security, to provide them with other basic needs, and to empower them socially.

DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) continues to be one of Africa’s most complex and long-standing humanitarian crises. In 2022, 5.7 million people were displaced within DRC and over one million refugees and asylum seekers from across the country had fled to neighbouring countries.

In 2022, the DRC witnessed a resurgence of conflict when the M23 rebel group led a campaign of violence in the country’s northeast, committing unlawful killings, rape, and other apparent war crimes. Deadly attacks on civilians have also damaged infrastructure and exacerbated an already alarming humanitarian crisis.

In situations of conflict, children’s education is often disrupted. Schools can become dangerous places, putting children at risk of violence. In DRC, War Child has delivered educational radio programming that delivers lessons from the country’s national curriculum, allowing youth and children to continue to learn in the safety of their communities.

War Child staff further organized training sessions for local organizations, families, and community members on child protection in school settings, raising awareness and teaching techniques to strengthen community-based child-protection initiatives.

To achieve a greater understanding of children’s rights, War Child led discussions and dialogues that shape a common understanding of how communities can ensure children feel safe and are afforded basic rights, including the right to an education.

SOUTH SUDAN

After decades of conflict, the humanitarian situation in South Sudan deteriorated again in 2022 when severe flooding, the result of a changing climate, sent traditional pastoralists fleeing south, their presence fueling tension and contributing to mounting violence in the region.

South Sudan has also been hard-hit by the hunger crisis unfolding in the Horn of Africa, with more than 7.8 million people in South Sudan projected to go hungry in 2023, an increase of 1.5 million over 2022.

To counter the impacts of the global food crisis in South Sudan, War Child’s food security and livelihoods work focuses on reducing inequalities in how women and men have access to and control over food resources. We worked towards enhancing women and girls’ skills and leadership in managing threats to food production, such as drought, flooding, and conflict, further providing women with agricultural and business training that will help them to generate more income for their families. We also engaged in projects that reduced the prevalence of sexual and gender-based violence, which normally prevents women from participating safely in agricultural activities.

War Child also worked to build women’s leadership and actively included women and girls in peacebuilding efforts, empowering them to be leaders in their communities and active participants in shaping the future of their country. We provided training sessions that focused on life skills, self-awareness, problem-solving, gender roles, and conflict resolution. The group developed dispute and conflict resolution action plans to implement in their local communities.

SUDAN

By the end of August 2022, Sudan was host to more than 3.6 million displaced people, including 2.5 million people displaced internally as well as 1 million refugees from neighbouring countries, including 73,000 who fled Ethiopia during the recent conflict in its northern Tigray region.

In 2022, War Child led programming with Ethiopian refugees in El Gedaref state, incorporating a variety of activities designed to restore a sense of normalcy for refugee youth, enabling their recovery and helping them re-engage with their lives and their communities. War Child developed activities such as English and Arabic language classes, computer training and cooking classes, peer support groups, art therapy, and business training for young women and unaccompanied youth.

War Child also incorporated opportunities for play into our programming for refugees in El Gedaref, a valuable tool that supports children in the development of their emotional well-being and recovery from trauma. In addition to providing a safe space for indoor games, we also established a soccer team made up of youth from the refugee camp and the neighbouring host community.

In West Darfur, where War Child has provided services for almost two decades, we continued our work focused on child protection, locally led peacebuilding initiatives, as well as water, sanitation, and hygiene projects. We rebuilt and repaired schools destroyed or damaged as a result of the state’s ongoing tribal conflict, as well as providing educational opportunities ranging from accelerated learning programs for youth to teacher and parent/teacher association training and teaching materials.

Finally, War Child created economic opportunities for youth and women including literacy and vocational training, youth engagement grants, sustainable farming training and associations, and small business support.

UGANDA

War Child has been supporting refugee and host communities in Uganda since 2005, focusing primarily on education and access to justice. Uganda hosts more than 1.5 million refugees – more than any other country in Africa. Focusing on both refugee and host communities, War Child has supported accelerated learning programs for tens of thousands of students, providing access to quality and relevant education and skills development.

In 2022, War Child also established new daycare centres as part of our accelerated learning programs, providing an opportunity for refugee mothers of young children the ability to return to their studies and reap the benefits of education for themselves and their young families.

War Child also continued our support of young social entrepreneurs who aspire to become a force for positive social and economic change, by providing them with the training and financial support to identify challenges in their communities and create entrepreneurial solutions to address them.

As a registered law firm in Uganda, War Child continued to provide vital legal services to women and children who have experienced gender-based violence and are seeking justice, building awareness about legal protections and rights. Our staff conducted mobile legal-aid clinics and court sessions in refugee settlements, offered community awareness sessions, and provided hundreds of survivors and community members in Uganda with legal representation.

YEMEN

After years of disease, disasters, and displacement, one of the world’s worst – and most neglected – humanitarian crises continues to unfold in Yemen. Reeling from seven years of civil war, compounded by natural disasters and COVID-19, nearly 4 million people have been displaced, 80% of them women and children. In March 2022, a ceasefire was declared between the warring parties – however, the legacies of conflict persist and over 23 million people need humanitarian assistance.

Twenty-five percent of Yemen’s schools were either destroyed, partially damaged, or being used for non-educational purposes because of the war, which is why War Child has prioritized their reconstruction. Our initial programs were focused in the south of the country, working with a local partner to rehabilitate war-damaged schools, which included repairs to the ceiling and walls, painting, and the distributions of furniture for teachers, hygiene kits, and cleaning supplies. We also fitted one of the schools with eight solar panels with a capacity of 300W to provide a stable electrical supply for the school.

War Child also ran school-based campaigns on issues involving child protection and improving access to education. We established volunteer-led child protection committees to help drive community-based child protection awareness, training, and reporting.

In 2022, we began working in schools in the Houthi-controlled north of the country. Thanks to War Child’s initial investment, children who had dropped out of school were able to return and the quality of learning had greatly improved.

A refurbished school helps create a safe environment for learning, however, children and their teachers also need resources. That is why War Child distributed teacher kits as well as recreation kits containing school supplies, balls, and other play items.

War Child is now continuing to build upon our successes in Yemen and grow our programs with an emphasis on improving access to children’s education, child protection, and food security.