Monrovia — The Director of the Lutheran Church in Liberia Trauma Healing and Reconciliation Program (LCL-THRP), Bishop F. Philip Nushann, has disclosed that the church, through its Trauma Healing and Reconciliation Program, is providing assistance to more than 100 children, who lost their parents during the Totota gas tanker explosion.
Speaking in an interview, Bishop Nushann explained that the support is being delivered in partnership with Bread for the World-Protestant Development Service (Brot für die Welt) and the Evangelical Church.
On December 26, 2023, Totota in Lower Bong County witnessed a tragic incident when a fuel tanker traveling from Monrovia to Gbarnga, exploded after colliding with a drainage along the highway, killing dozens and leaving many children orphaned.
According to Bishop Nushann, the LCL-THRP is not only providing material support to the orphans but is also offering psychosocial rehabilitation through counseling to help them cope with the trauma.
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He noted that the Trauma Healing and Reconciliation Program was established in 1998 by the Lutheran Church in Liberia to promote peacebuilding, national reconciliation, and psychosocial support for traumatized individuals and communities.
Bishop Nushann further explained that the program also seeks to reduce societal fragmentation through psychosocial intervention and empowerment of vulnerable groups, including returning migrants and drug users.
The initiative is being implemented in partnership with the Civil Peace Service (CPS) and Bread for the World Germany.
He emphasized that the LCL-THRP is part of the Civil Peace Service (CPS) Network of Liberia, an initiative of the German Federal Government comprising both governmental and non-governmental institutions, including religious organizations.
The network works to strengthen civil structures, promote peace, and ensure the responsible use of natural resources, with a special focus on youth and women in the Mano River region.
Currently, Bishop Nushann disclosed, the program is providing life-skills training and empowerment opportunities to 10 returning migrants and 10 drug users.
He said the project is designed to work with parents and communities to reintegrate rehabilitated individuals into society, reduce stigma and discrimination, and help disadvantaged youth realize their potential.
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"The intent is to ensure that these young people, who are future leaders of Liberia, are rehabilitated and given hope to become useful once again to society," Bishop Nushann concluded. Editing by Jonathan Browne
