Caritas India organised a four-day intensive training program on Protection Mainstreaming in Aizawl, Mizoram. The event was organised during July 26-29, 2022, at the Aijal club under PROCAP project supported by ECHO for Northeast states focusing on displaced communities. A total of 29 participants attended the event.

Mr. John Condon, an expert in the field of protection mainstreaming brought in a very rich thematic experience to facilitate the whole training program around the protection principles of Safety, Dignity and Access.  The program team members from state-based partner organisations of DSSS, Imphal and ZEP, Aizawl participated in the training. CRS state representatives also attended the event. Mr. Thomas Preindl and Mr. Sunil Simon from Caritas Austria steered the anchoring of this training viz-a-viz importance of the theme and its field applicability.

Fr. Paul Moonjely, Executive Director of Caritas India who was visiting the state to meet various stakeholders also addressed the participants to encourage them by being true to the mission at hand and emphasised the importance of the community partnership that has been at the centre of everything Caritas does.

The training session focused on principles and standards of Protection mainstreaming in every aspect and across different phases and sectoral approaches of the program. The frontline team members (community mobilisers) presented and appraised the participants with the field scenario and their challenges and experiences. Their observations helped in facilitating the training to carve a way forward and formulate the action plan.

The training further focused on identifying community processes and their empowerment through various degrees of engagement and facilitation under the program. The importance of community feedback and local leaders’ engagement was deemed and realised by the participants as vital to the success of the program.

Mr. Dileesh Varghese facilitated sessions on MEAL by sharing scientific approaches and methods to be applied while making rightsholders’ selection along with the MEAL calendar & relevant tools to be applied with the Protection lens.  The Training was concluded in the esteemed presence of Most Rev. Stephen Rotluanga, Bishop of Aizawl presided by Executive director and Thematic Lead-HA& DRR of Caritas India in tow with Caritas Austria officials. All the dignitaries motivated and guided the participants to work with utmost sincerity to ensure that people in distress feel safe and avail their right to access services with dignity intact.