A community based sociotherapy programme was implemented in the North of Rwanda in 2005. This article describes the background of sociotherapy, explains its principles and application in therapy for refugees in the Netherlands, and gives a justification for the introduction of the approach in a particular setting in post war and post genocide Rwanda. It then focuses on the development of the programme in this setting and addresses recruitment criteria for facilitators. It includes the qualities these facilitators and programme staff should have, the training process, the programme implementation, as well as the sociotherapy methods applied in the field with some examples from practice, the reception by the various stakeholders and the expansion to other areas. The article ends with a selection of the many challenges the programme faces.

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In Uganda, the rates of mental illness are high due to poverty, high prevalence of HIV/AIDS and long-term exposure to civil wars and armed rebellion. The cost of mental health services in urban hospitals remains prohibitive for the rural poor who resort to traditional healers, and many mental health workers prefer working in urban areas. In response, a community outreach program has been developed in rural, southwestern Uganda to deliver effective mental health care. The programme was aimed at improving access to psychiatric care by taking services to communities where the majority of the rural population live, yet where services were non-existent. Baseline information on the training needs was collected by interviewing health workers in rural health units, and the need for a mental health service was assessed by interviewing members of the community and local leaders. Records of local health units were also reviewed. The result of the programme has shown that marginalized and neglected people with mental disorders have been able to access mental health care. Through increasing knowledge and access to psychiatric services in the community, mental health problems and psychological problems can be managed effectively with little need for referral to larger hospitals.

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In many areas of armed conflict there is an urgent need for relevant knowledge and practical skills around mental health and psychosocial interventions. Knowledge developed at Western universities, or in Western practice, does not easily translate into practice in a non-western context. In this article, an approach to developing relevant knowledge and practical know-how is described that can be utilized within the context of a developing country. This approach also is useful when working with immigrants and refugees in a western context.

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This article shares some of the findings of a qualitative study of ex-militants in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir. Men who have been involved in militancy were interviewed about their life experience and ideas. A significant theme that emerged through interpretive data analysis was that of an activist identity that evolved over time and life experience. In this regard, they were found to possess personal qualities and convictions that could be seen as valuable resources for social development and peace building.

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Professionals from western countries often supervise local staff in mental health projects implemented in low-income and emergency-affected contexts. The work of these supervisors is always intercultural: it involves people from different cultural backgrounds. The supervisor has the responsibility to initiate and monitor these intercultural processes. The supervisor must be able to recognize differences within the supervision group and between supervisor and supervisee, and to question the values of any culture, including his/her own.

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The events that characterise complex emergencies: situations of armed conflict, forced migration and natural disasters, can pose a serious risk of violation of children's rights. Psychosocial interventions in such contexts are generally implemented from a ‘needs’ perspective, and children's human rights are not integrated into the conceptual framework. This article describes the legal and moral obligations of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), and outlines the process of human rights based programming and evaluation. It is suggested that psychosocial interventions would better meet children's needs and rights if planning, implementation and evaluation were informed by the guiding principles of the CRC.

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