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The Somali Counselling Project (SCP) is a UK registered charity (Charity No. 1001337) established in 1990 to help the influx of Somali refugees arriving in the UK who fled the civil war in Somalia.
Since its establishment SCP has been active in assisting people from the Somali community to adjust to life in the UK and cope with the traumatic experiences faced during conflict and displacement through a broad range of charitable services. The charitable objects of the SCP are as follows:
- To relieve poverty among people of Somali origin, in particular by the provision of advice and counselling
- To relieve sickness among people of Somali origin
- To provide for the public benefit or assist in the provision of information and advice, particularly for members of the Somali community in the interests of social welfare and with the object of improving their conditions of life
In 1996 the SCP board decided to extend its work to Somaliland (formerly northern Somalia) to address the psychological humanitarian and social and psychological instability that resulted from the civil war with the aim of tackling the underlying cause of refugee displacement. SCP therefore established ‘Gargaar Organisation’ as it’s the operating arm in Somaliland at a time when deep inter clan conflicts threatened the very existence of this newly formed state. The name Gargaar, which means ‘to help’ in Somali was adopted due to public sensitiveness to the use of ‘Somali’ because of Somaliland’s recent secession from Somalia during that period.
In its extended role as Gargaar, the organisation initially began its work with a ‘football for guns’ campaign and provision of vocational skills training to ex-militias in carpentry, mechanics and welding in order to provide them with skills to make an honest living and deter them from gun culture and the clan based conflicts that were taking place at the time. Somaliland was going through a rebuilding phase after the civil war destroyed most of the infrastructure and there was a shortage of skilled professionals. The project proved to be very successful and soon more youth football teams began to emerge and there was a high demand for more skills training.
Even after war and other violent conflicts come to an end its impact on the people can be observed long after. The violence experienced or witnessed in the civil war led to many people becoming deeply traumatized. Gargaar therefore began providing psychosocial support to traumatized school children to help them cope with trauma and overcome its effects. Dr Omar Dihoud who is the executive director of Gargaar also began providing PTSD training for school teachers throughout Somaliland in a training of trainer’s scheme funded by Christian Aid and Tearfund.
Over time advocacy for minority and marginalized communities, basic education, HIV/AIDS and Self Help Groups projects were introduced into the work of Gargaar.
Since its establishment in Somaliland over 15 years ago Gargaar has continued to work in promoting regional peace and stability whilst contributing to the development of the country through the implementation of advocacy, awareness raising and livelihoods development projects. Gargaar remains committed to continuing its work until the organizational vision and mission are realized.
Our Vision
A Somaliland in which human suffering is alleviated, basic needs are met and the rights of all peoples are respected.
Our Mission
Our Mission is to ensure that adequate Provision, Protection and Care are available for the vulnerable, the disadvantaged, and minority groups in Somaliland. Our Mission is also to fight for impartial justice for all people.
What we do
Find out how we work to fight poverty and injustice
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