Demobilization, Disarmament, Rehabilitation, and Reintegration (DDRR)
AGRICULTURE
- Natural resource management
- Food security
- Animal husbandry
- Farmer training
- Agricultural development
Through a range of programs, UMCOR NGO supports agricultural production, processing and marketing, training, technical and financial assistance, extension services, and rehabilitation of key rural infrastructures.
Under UMCOR NGO’s monetization programs, US-produced agricultural commodities, such as wheat, soybean meal, and sunflower oil are donated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and imported for sale to local consumers. Proceeds generated from the sales have been invested in a variety of programs including agricultural training, capacity building for local NGOs, agricultural credit, rehabilitation of rural community infrastructure, rural farm technical assistance, agriculture-based youth development programs, conflict resolution training, youth houses, and education.
CIVIL SOCIETY AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
- Youth house establishment and support
- Capacity building for local NGOs
- Community group development
UMCOR NGO strives to provide local organizations with the tools and information they need to continue and improve upon existing services as well as develop new ideas and directions. This is accomplished through funding capacity building, civil society projects, and a variety of training courses. UMCOR NGO also aims to assist local organizations to identify mechanisms for sustainability and help them grow stronger through networking with others and advocating for their communities. Through these efforts UMCOR NGO can leave a positive legacy behind after its eventual exit.
UMCOR NGO promotes sustainable community development by providing local capacity building support, technical and financial support to local organizations and individuals, civil society building, conflict resolution, and skills training. Programs have used community development activities to encourage grassroots democratic action and to bring immediate improvement in people’s living conditions.
GENDER-BASED PROGRAMMING
- Women empowerment programs
- Counter trafficking activities
UMCOR NGO promotes gender-specific concerns through income generation activities, financial and technical support for local women’s organizations, vocational skills training for trafficked women, leadership skills training, and technical and financial assistance in reproductive and primary health care. UMCOR NGO has conducted a number of micro-credit programs targeting women, as well as small urban and rural businesses. Income generation activities have enabled thousands of women beneficiaries to receive training and access to capital, resulting in new businesses, business expansion, additional income, and employment.
HEALTH
- Health education
- Pharmaceutical supply
- Mobile medical outreach
- Health kit distribution
Supporting health care delivery through health education, training, management and administrative capacity building services, medicines, medical supplies, and equipment are some of the major health services provided by UMCOR NGO’s field offices.
The capacity to generate in-kind donations such as medicines, clinic and hospital supplies, and hygiene kits through the United Methodist Church and NGO partners allows UMCOR NGO to make a significant, positive impact on the health sector wherever it operates. Additionally, UMCOR NGO operates Mobile Medical Teams that help clinics transition to more sustainable community-based models by training local community health providers, managing medical clinics that benefit asylum seekers, and assisting with rehabilitating the pharmaceutical sector.
UMCOR NGO has over a decade of experience implementing projects in the health sector through distributing more than USD 40 million worth of medicines, medical supplies, and hygiene kits to health care facilities serving socially vulnerable groups.
HIV/AIDS
- HIV/AIDS Education
- HIV/AIDS awareness programs
UMCOR NGO promotes HIV/AIDS education through its public health programs. Educating vulnerable populations about the risks of HIV/AIDS through the community trainers helps spread the word to those who are most at risk for contracting this deadly disease. UMCOR NGO also promotes awareness through public service announcements and posters where appropriate.
HUMANITARIAN RESPONSE AND INTERVENTION
- International relief
- Food and non-food item distribution
UMCOR NGO actively responds to natural or civil disasters by providing field-based humanitarian assistance.
INCOME GENERATION
- Micro-credit loans
- Small enterprise support
- Business training
- Market linkages
- Group and individual lending
UMCOR NGO provides support for business development and management, loans and grants, and training and technical assistance in several countries where it works. UMCOR NGO has conducted a number of micro-credit programs targeting women, small urban and rural businesses, and minorities. Income generation activities have enabled thousands of beneficiaries to be trained and gain access to capital, resulting in new businesses, business expansion, additional income, and employment. Some UMCOR NGO lending programs are based on a group methodology in which, for example, five borrowers are responsible for each other’s loans.
RECONSTRUCTION
- Housing repair and reconstruction
- Infrastructure rehabilitation
UMCOR NGO draws from its decade of experience in this area to reconstruct and repair houses, physical infrastructure (such as electrical networks, water supply systems and street lighting), educational and health institutions, and public buildings. The program philosophy is that success depends on each community’s full involvement. Activities are participatory and part of an integrated community rehabilitation strategy. Staff discusses and jointly plans rehabilitation projects in cooperation with local authorities at the community, district, provincial, and ministerial levels to ensure the project’s lasting success. Additional reconstruction work includes repairing ambulatory clinics, new construction for economic development, and repairing rural water supply structures, irrigation units, schools, roads, and bridges.
EDUCATION
- Formal education
- Informal education
UMCOR NGO supports formal education by improving already existing institutions through supplementary funding for school fees and teacher salaries. Where there is an absence of formal education, UMCOR NGO participates in activities that foster the development of such programs.
Informal education activities include vocational, cultural, extracurricular, and civic programs. They work in conjunction with other initiatives aimed at civil society building, conflict resolution, and skills training. In every country where UMCOR NGO operates, informal education activities are present to provide integrated and sustainable development.
PEACE BUILDING
- Religious reconciliation
- Peace camps
- Peace through trade
- Peace through agriculture
In many of the countries where UMCOR NGO operates, a transition is underway from conflict, often amongst different ethnic groups or communities, towards peaceful coexistence and development. Peace building efforts cut across several sectors of UMCOR NGO’s work, such as the return and reintegration of minorities, working with youth to build conflict resolution skills, and the demobilization and reintegration of child soldiers. UMCOR NGO understands that conflict resolution work often must be coupled with income generation opportunities, education, or health initiatives to address the roots of inequality. This also supports the greater and more challenging goal of forestalling future outbreaks of conflict. UMCOR NGO frequently works with youth in implementing conflict resolution programs to foster long-term tolerance and peace.
DEMOBILIZATION, DISARMAMENT, REHABILITATION, AND REINTEGRATION (DDRR)
- Psycho-social program
- Training former soldiers
- Camp management
DDRR activities support the peace process. This work always occurs within the UN system of bringing peace to a conflicted area. UMCOR NGO is currently engaged in DDRR activities in Liberia where it operates as a UN subcontractor. In Liberia UMCOR is engaged in camp management and is facilitating the reintegration of ex-combatants through vocational skills training and literacy programs.
