The socio-political crisis in Cameroon’s Northwest and Southwest regions has led to the loss of lives, displacement of people and separation of families. As a result, inhabitants within these regions have migrated to other communities for fear of losing their lives. In most cases, these internally displaced persons (IDP) have very little or no means of survival.

LUKMEF, within the UNFPA projects, carried out interventions in the Northwest, Southwest and Littoral Regions aimed at empowering vulnerable women and girls, as well as IDPs.

Within the framework of the UNFPA-CERF project, LUKMEF carried out an ergotherapy activity at the women and girls’ safe space in Idenau. This activity aimed to empower vulnerable women and girls in liquid soap production, wherein 18 beneficiaries learned how liquid soap is produced.

This activity was equally meant to engage survivors of GBV in interactive sessions with other vulnerable persons to enhance their healing from the traumatic experiences they have been through.

Due to the interactive nature of ergotherapy activities, it is considered as most loved activity by survivors of GBV and other vulnerable women and girls. This is because it provides a platform where survivors can freely interact and share their life experiences.

Apart from being an activity that brings survivors together and enhances their healing process, ergotherapy activities also enable women to acquire specific skills that provide income for them when they return to their communities. This is because most of the activities carried out are income generating and will go a long way to generate income for beneficiaries, thereby reducing their vulnerability rate.