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Heal and Connect

Heal and Connect is an original Play Africa programme in response to the COVID-19 crisis. Guided by global frameworks created by UNICEF, UNESCO, World Health Organisation and others, Play Africa helps local schools and community groups to create a humane, rights-based response to COVID-19 that is rooted in play and mental health and psychosocial support.

Working with 8 community-based organisations, we've provided psychologicalfirstaid to 646 parents and caregivers, guided by recommendations from UNICEF, Inter-agency Network for Education in Emergencies (INEE) and others. Our team of trained facilitators are running in-person parent support groups, making one-on-one phone calls to provide psychosocial support, and links to professional services. Testimonial from caregivers: "I would like to say thank you so much for taking your time during this pandemic. You sacrifice a lot of time just to make sure we are safe and connect with our kids and play as much as we can to forget about our stressful life." - Caregiver "Thank you Play Africa for doing what they have done for us. Now we can communicate with our children and play with them." - Caregiver "Beyond what I knew as a father, I have learnt a lot as a parent and I have realised through the self care sessions that it is important to play and engage with your child to understand how they feel." - Caregiver

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