Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights project graduates community influencers
By Patrick Opio
Senior Communications Officer
The Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights, Lira University Center has graduated community trainers to help fight sexual and gender based violence amongst the local communities in the sub-region.
More than 70 locals from Barr subcoutny and lira City West Division participated in the course, Leadership-in-Action Training (LiAT) on sexual and Gender Based Violence Rights and Justice for community influencers.
Lira University Vice Chancellor, Prof. Jasper Ogwal Okeng was the Chief Guest at the graduation ceremony at the SRHR sexual education training Center, Lira University, on 11th November 2022.
Ogwal Okeng noted that as Lira University, community health takes priority, the reason why the first academic programme and faculty was on Midwifery and nursing. “The Center will help in training the community through engagement and helping them to get out of their problems,” he says.
He said that more such community trainings be conducted from across the region. He advised the graduands to put what they learnt during the training into practice through sensitising the people in their respective areas.
Prof. Dr. Jasper Ogwal Okeng hailed the Dutch Government for the project adding that it will boost the Lira University’s support and the entire northern Uganda in enhance community trainings in sexual and gender issues.
Ogwal Okeng noted that although Lira University is one of the youngest Public Universities in Uganda, it has continued to grow in different fields including attracting development partners from across the world.
The Dutch government, through the Netherlands Universities Foundation for International Cooperation (NUFFIC) under the “Strengthening Education and Training in Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights” (SET-SRHR) project in Uganda, funded the construction and equipping of a multi-disciplinary Center at Lira University.
Assoc. Prof. Dr Auma Okwany, the course convenor and Overall Project Director hailed Vice Chancellor, Prof. Jasper Ogwal and his team for supporting LIAT and other trainings conducted at the SET-SRHR Center.
She noted that the violation of sexual reproductive health leads to gender based violence and impacts negatively on the development and human life, a situation that must be avoided by all stakeholders.
Prof. Auma Okwany says the project aims at changing the negative mind-set against women from across cultures through enhancing inclusive SRHR services and education, permeating different human resources issues.
She added that domestic violence has no borders, educated or uneducated, poor or rich, a practice that requires joint efforts to tackle. She added that violence against women has far reaching impacts that should be given much attention by all stakeholders.
The SRHR Center is a multidisciplinary point for training on SRHR in north and other parts of the country with the SET-SRHR trained national Master trainers and Post-Graduate diploma in SRHR.
