Working in BidiBidi and Palorinya refugee settlements in Uganda, our Community Based Rehabilitation workers (CBRs) ensure the most vulnerable refugees can access disability and nutrition support. Our CBRs are a dedicated team, many of whom are refugees themselves, with unrivalled knowledge of the needs of persons with disabilities in the settlements. They provide education and refer individuals to our projects, including wheelchair distributions and nutrition and agriculture programmes.
Uganda continues to experience the largest refugee crisis in Africa. There are significant challenges in the settlements, including access to health and disability care and food aid. Individuals with disabilities are among the most vulnerable. Without wheelchairs or prosthetic limbs, their access to key services including health services is limited. The majority also live on less than a day ($0.50) making them reliant on food aid, yet monthly rations last only 14 days of a 30 day month.
CBR's develop enduring, personal relationships with individuals through household visits and patient assessments. They provide education and refer individuals to our projects, such as nutrition, agriculture and livelihood programmes and New Hope Rehabilitation centre which offers wheelchair provision, physiotherapy, prosthetic & orthotic devices and rehabilitation services to over 16,000 individuals a year. CBRs are the driving force of this work, identifying and supporting individuals in need.
Our CBR team promote and protect the human rights of people with disabilities, challenging the negative perceptions and stigmas against them. We are passionate about empowering positive, sustainable change for the most vulnerable refugees and their communities. Our goal is to ensure that individuals are able to maximise their abilities, gain access to services and opportunities, grow their own food and to become active in their community, empowering them with the ability to change their futures.
