Building the capacity of national stakeholders to provide social and psychological support to people in time of war and during post-conflict recovery

War is a tragedy that inflicts traumatic scars on individuals, communities and societies. From the lasting psychological strain on those who survived violent incidents or combat, to everyone who has lost a loved one, their homes or have had to flee. Beyond its impact on mental health, there is also a spill-over effect, including rising rates of domestic violence. The availability of quality psychological and social support to people affected by war, including children, is of crucial importance for post-conflict rehabilitation, and reconstruction efforts.

This project aims to equip people in Ukraine’s governmental agencies and civil society organizations with best practices, knowledge and skills to effectively assist people in time of war and during post-conflict recovery. The OSCE offers training opportunities and expertise to authorities and social service providers in local communities, promotes co-ordination and experience exchange. The overall goal is to support the emergence of a comprehensive system for the provision of social and psychological assistance to those affected by the war. Special focus is on equipping the law-enforcement psychologists and other relevant personnel with the tools and capacities to provide support in emergencies, including dealing with states of acute stress, preventive psychological and mental health assistance to their colleagues and to people on the ground. Training opportunities are also offered for “102” hotline operators to increase their ability to deal with gender-based violence cases in the context of war.

The project builds on OSCE’s prior work to enhance the psycho-social assistance to conflict-affected people, as well as efforts to implement anti-domestic violence policies. It is part of the OSCE Secretariat Extra-Budgetary Support Programme for Ukraine implemented with extra-budgetary contributions from the Organization's participating States; see the full list of the Programme's donors.