Since 2015, ASASE no longer supports any program in Sudan.
The purpose of this program, created in 1990, was to help the population living in displaced camps, in the outskirts of Khartoum, to become self-sufficient.
It gradually developed and culminated in 2006 with the training of nearly 2 000 adults (men and women) in five centres.
Since then, its activity declined for three main reasons:
- a lack of funding due to the global financial crisis;
- for years, international NGOs had agreed with SVDP to outsource adults training in our workshops; but many organizations had to leave the country after the arrest warrant decided in March 2009 by the International Criminal Court against Sudanese President on counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur.
- first the forecasted partition of the country, and then the creation of the new State of South Sudan in 2011, have brought about the return of hundreds of thousands of displaced people in their region of origin.
In 2011, the Wad El Bashir centre still trained about 170 adults.
This centre provided training in carpentry, masonry, welding, electricity, tailoring, secretariat / computer and refrigeration / air-conditioning.
Each training course use to last approximately 6 months.
This may seem too short a period for getting enough experience, but the IDPs were badly in need of a quick training program to become self-reliant in the shortest possible time.
The UN, through the UNIDO (United Nations Industry Development Organization) assessed our vocational program and called it "an excellent quick impact project".
Another centre, in Gabarona, was providing courses in Health / HIV awareness / hygiene / first aid (in collaboration with the Red Crescent) to 150 adults in 2011. The graduates had the possibility to continue their training in hospital, and sometimes they were then hired as medical assistants.
Nearly 60% of the graduates used to find a job within two months (half of them were self-employed).
Many graduates of our training have used their skills to help rebuild their region of origin, in the South.
