30 after the Genocide against the Tutsi, trauma healing remains a pressing public health concern in Rwanda. Interpeace and its local partners are contributing towards addressing this challenge by implementing a holistic peacebuilding programme that focuses on mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS), social cohesion, prisoner rehabilitation and reintegration and economic development through collaborative livelihood initiatives. A combination of these three pillars into one programme is meant to foster both individual and community healing as well as resilience.

This programme was designed based on previous research studies by Interpeace and its partners (2015 & 2018), which indicated that many Rwandans still carry wounds stemming from the Genocide. In some cases, the wounds have been passed down to the younger generations which—although they were born after the Genocide— live with its consequences and must contribute to the nation’s recovery. The programme interventions were also informed by the Rwanda Mental Health Survey (RMHS, 2018), a nationwide population-based survey, which revealed that the prevalence of several mental disorders in Rwanda is higher than the global average.