Earlier this month in Entebbe, the United Nations Regional Service Centre Entebbe, in close partnership with the United Nations Department of Safety and Security, had the privilege of hosting 23 mental health professionals, including psychiatrists, psychologists, and UN Stress Counsellors, who successfully completed the UNDSS Certification Programme.
This collaboration reflects a strong and growing partnership between UNRSCE and UNDSS, grounded in a shared commitment to strengthening operational readiness, staff wellbeing, and psychosocial support across the UN system. By combining UNDSS’s technical leadership in critical incident stress management with the Centre’s capacity as a regional hub for training and operational support, the programme delivered a high quality and impactful learning experience.
The in person phase, hosted at the Centre, built on the online component delivered in December 2025 and provided participants with advanced, practice oriented skills to navigate complex emergency contexts. Through scenario based learning and collaborative exchange, participants enhanced their ability to deliver timely, coordinated, and evidence informed psychosocial support in high risk environments.
The training was facilitated by Janvier Rugira and Anne-Marie Serrano-Banquet from New York, whose expertise and field informed approach contributed significantly to the depth and practical relevance of the sessions.
Participants represented a diverse range of duty stations and countries, including Guinea, Chad, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Madagascar, Haiti, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Central African Republic, Togo, Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Niger, Mali, Burundi, Senegal, Algeria, and Tunisia. This diversity enriched the learning environment and further strengthened cross regional collaboration, an essential pillar of effective crisis response.
Through this joint effort, UNRSCE and UNDSS are contributing to the development of a certified, deployable network of mental health professionals equipped to provide consistent and high quality support to UN personnel and their families worldwide.
Made possible through the generous support of the Government of Japan, this programme stands as a testament to what strong partnerships can achieve. It reinforces a collective commitment to investing in capacity building, enhancing resilience, and ensuring that UN personnel serving in the world’s most challenging environments are supported by highly trained and coordinated mental health professionals.
