In September, Watchlist attended a three-day International Conference Children and Youth Affected by Armed Conflict in Kampala, Uganda. The participants of the Conference reflected on a decade of rehabilitation and reintegration processes for children and youth affected by armed conflict. Some of the questions raised were: How can transition processes be built appropriately? Must transcultural aspects be included in programming and support? How can we tackle processes of stigmatization and exclusion? Since many of these questions cannot be approached from a single perspective, the Conference explored a multitude of disciplinary approaches, including clinical psychology, social work, transitional justice, human rights, pedagogical sciences, education, global public health, and international advocacy. During the conference, a set of recommendations for policy makers, practitioners and researchers were formulated with the aim to learn from best practices on the rehabilitation and reintegration of conflict-affected children.
Watchlist was invited to contribute to the Conference’s opening session. In her remarks, Watchlist Executive Director Eva Smets challenged the participants to reflect on the ways how international advocacy, and most specifically the UN Security Council, could support their goals on rehabilitation and reintegration.
