OSACO to provide SEAH Investigation Training
OSACO and UNICEF will be collaborating again in 2023, this time in East and Southern Africa. OSACO Group will deliver its highly successful Sexual Exploitation & Abuse and Harassment (SEAH) Investigation Training Course and post-course coaching and mentoring programme.
OSACO, in collaboration with UNICEF East and Southern Africa, is currently developing plans to train up to 125 staff from UNICEF Implementing Partners in five countries, namely South Sudan, Uganda, Tanzania, Mozambique, and Madagascar in early 2023.
“The risk of SEAH in humanitarian operations is a key issue for the United Nations and if it occurs it causes significant harm,” says Sean Buckley, Director of Field Operations & Projects for OSACO Group. “The ability for UNICEF partners to be able to professionally and confidently investigate allegations is key to addressing the UN’s concerns.”
A needs assessment is currently underway with selected UNICEF Implementing Partners in those five countries to identify strengths and weaknesses in their current ability to undertake workplace investigations.
OSACO will then finetune its training material to focus on critical areas to ensure the high priority elements of an investigation are well understood by the training participants.
In early 2023, OSACO trainers will travel to Africa to deliver training to approximately 25 Implementing Partner staff in each of the five countries (South Sudan, Uganda, Tanzania, Mozambique, and Madagascar). UNICEF PSEA Focal Points will also be attending the training to help support and better understand the investigative process.
“Our training is highly collaborative, engaging, and demanding and will equip newly trained investigators with thorough theoretical and practical experience in conducting SEAH investigations,” says Sean.
Following the training, OSACO consultants will remain engaged to support the newly trained investigators through online coaching and mentoring sessions. This mentoring period is designed to ensure the investigators are able to access ongoing support, advice on real cases, review of case management, and ongoing training development.
OSACO Group has been successfully training investigators since 2013 and this year engaged with UNICEF in a five-year long-term agreement to deliver ongoing SEAH Investigation training. The first set of training under this contract was conducted in Pakistan in May this year and received very positive feedback.
“We are really excited to be building upon the success of our recent project in Pakistan. Our engagement with the UNICEF ESA team is a positive step in our ongoing relationship with UNICEF,” says Sean.
“UNICEF and its Implementing Partners provide critical humanitarian support globally and working with them to support their mission is always a positive experience. We are looking forward to this upcoming mission in the New Year. We hope to be on the ground delivering this vital training in late January and early February 2023, and to continue supporting the investigators with our coaching and mentoring sessions in March and April. Ongoing negotiations with other UNICEF and UNHCR Regional Offices may result in even more training throughout Africa in the coming year.”
