Mental Health Promotion through Indigenous Mourning Practices: African Great-Lakes Region Perspective. Mack Maulana Majo- Jesuit Refugee Service (UNHCR)Malawi. 1

Background In all cultures, rituals and traditions are social fabrics that characterise mourning and grieving processes. Some of the cultures help in negotiating with loss and readjusting to life. 2

Objective The study aimed at exploring different grieving practices among the refugees and asylum seekers at Dzaleka Refugee camp. 3

Methodology Fifty participants from trauma support healing programmes mainlt from African Great Lakes RegionL DRC Congo, Rwanda, were exposed into remembering and mourning processes where they are encouraged into normal recalling of the events. This is a 10 week trauma healing support programme that integrates Narrative Exposure Treatment (NET) as part of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. 4

Observations Trauma support group programmes have shown that refugees that fully participated in cultural mourning processes back home or in a place of refugee like Malawi, Tanzania or elsewhere showed little symptoms of unresolved grief. Whereas, those that had no chance in performing the rituals or customs as per their cultural acceptable standards of mourning had a number of psychological symptoms relating to unresolved grief (also known as unfinished business).The symptoms include Anger, Blame, Complains, Denial and Emotional Withdraw. 5

CONCLUSION AND RECCOMENDATIONS Integration of some indigenous practices in trauma support groups, Grieve counselling sessions and other counselling programmes has proved to be helpful. Hence a need to not ignore them for achieving mental wellness in our various mental health programmes. Asante Sana, Mungu Abalike!!!!!!!!!!!! Thank very much, God bless!!! 6