Reintegrating girls from fighting forces in Africa

Armed conflicts in Mozambique from 1978 to 1992, in Sierra Leone from 1991 to 2002 and still ongoing in Northern Uganda (since 1987) have displaced, killed and maimed millions. Hospitals, roads and schools have been destroyed, communities impoverished and professionals such as teachers and nurses killed. In each conflict thousands of boys and girls as young as seven were forcibly recruited into the fighting forces. The experience has affected many of them emotionally and physically, and deprived them of years of education. New research tackles the complex question of how best to reintegrate former girl soldiers back into society and education.

In Northern Uganda, most girl soldiers were abducted during their primary education into the Lords’ Resistance Army. Since their return, almost half of them have been unable to resume their studies. Primary education is free, but most of the schools in the north of the country have closed down due to insecurity. For those who have missed several years of schooling, it is shameful to be in class with much younger children. Similarly, around 30% of girl and young women returnees interviewed (aged 12-29) are now mothers and are unable to go to school themselves or send their own children. The stigma of poverty and their experiences of forced abduction from the village and rebel captivity mean that their own children are largely excluded from school. Secondary school fees prevent girls from continuing their education.

Three quarters of the former girl soldiers interviewed in Sierra Leone expressed a desire to return to school and to become literate. The majority had been in school prior to their entry into the fighting forces, but only a few of them have been able to return. Sierra Leone ranks among the last country in the world for children attending school, yet these girls recognise how important access to education and skills training is for their successful reintegration.

Those interviewed in Mozambique have also missed educational and skills training opportunities. Government ethnic discrimination prevented many girls from attending school, and some joined rebel forces on promises of academic scholarships that never materialised, but at which point they were forced to stay with the rebels. As in Sierra Leone and Northern Uganda, schools were targeted by rebels for the abduction of girls into the fighting forces and were destroyed.

In all three countries, girls and young women were overwhelmingly excluded from government and United Nations-based Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration (DDR) programmes, primarily because, as girls, they do not fit the ideas of who is a ‘real fighter’ compared to men and boys. Their exclusion from DDR programmes – and the money, education and training benefits such programmes provide – leaves them unable to provide for themselves or their children. Accessing education is a critical part of reintegration and the girls themselves repeatedly prioritise and call for the right to schooling, for themselves and their children. They see it as a way out of a vicious cycle of poverty, exclusion, and vulnerability.

There are several education-related recommendations from the study. These aim to support the reintegration of girls into communities and to provide them with the skills and knowledge that will empower them for the future. They include the need to:

• develop accelerated learning programmes for girls who have missed several years of schooling
• prioritise education and skills training for demobilised girls and their children
• make programmes accessible and welcoming to pregnant girls and girl mothers
• build on the positive skills, and the sense of power and independence some girls gained during military life (e.g. building on leadership, health care and organisational skills)
• to provide information related to gender-based violence and reproductive health, HIV/AIDS, and other sexually-transmitted diseases
• include psycho-social support and encourage self-esteem and self-confidence for girls
• design skills training that does not reinforce gender stereotypes, such as more highly-paid skills of carpentry, welding, and construction.

In addition, analyses of girls’ experiences within fighting forces need to be incorporated into DDR programme design, delivery, and evaluation. Programmes also need to be developed with the local community to ensure that opportunities are given to returning girls and young women, as well as to non-combatant, war-affected girls, to avoid tensions within communities over resource allocations.

Dyan Mazurana
Feinstein International Famine Center, Tufts University
126 Curtis Street
Medford MA 02155
USA
T +1 617 627 3203
Mazurana@hotmail.com

‘Where are the Girls ? Girls in Fighting Forces in Northern Uganda, Sierra Leone and Mozambique: Their Lives During and After War’ Montreal: Rights and Democracy by Susan McKay and Dyan Mazurana 2004

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