Culturally appropriate mentoring for young Horn of Africans in Australia Pooja Sawrikar, Megan Griffiths and Kristy Muir Social Policy Research Centre, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia Prepared for Association of Childrens Welfare Agencies (ACWA) Conference Sydney, August 2008 The authors acknowledge the National Youth Affairs Research Scheme (NYARS) for funding to complete this research. This paper expresses the views of the authors only and not NYARS.

Overview of presentation uBackground uAim uMethod uResults uConclusion

Background: demographics uRecent increase in the number of young people from the Horn of Africa in Australia vHorn of Africa: Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia and Sudan vMost people from Horn of Africa enter under Special Humanitarian Program (SHP) v97% of entrants from Sudan (N = between ) under SHP vBetween , 65% who entered under SHP were < 30 years old

Background: challenges uAs a newly arrived migrant group, service providers know little about their needs and how best to address them uAlso, the needs of Horn of African families are different from the needs of the young person in that family uChallenges: vAs a young person ve.g. pursuing educational and employment opportunities vAs an ethnic minority in Australia ve.g. racism or acculturation, and vAs a Horn of African ve.g. PTSD or loss of country

Background: mentoring uState governments (especially Victoria) are relying on mentoring as a possible source of support for young Horn of Africans uMentoring is: vthe formation of a helping relationship between a younger person (the mentee) and an unrelated, relatively older, more experienced person (the mentor) who can increase the capacity of the young person to connect with positive social and economic networks to improve their life chances (Department for Victorian Communities, 2005)

Background: benefits of mentoring for young people uPossible short term benefits Address challenges related to: v age, v ethnicity, and vdirect or indirect trauma from the Horn of Africa uPossible longer term benefits v Increase sense of empowerment for navigating the socio-cultural and institutional systems in Australia, and v increase or promote sense of inclusion in Australia

Background: benefits are conditional on... u The extent to which mentoring effectively achieves these possible benefits cannot be determined until mentoring programs are established and evaluated. u However, it is still important for mentoring organisations to be aware of how best to tailor their service delivery to ensure it is culturally appropriate. u This was the aim of this study: v conducted by the SPRC, and v commissioned by NYARS

Aims u Main aim of this study: v to identify how best to tailor current mentoring programs, policies, and procedures to make it culturally appropriate for young Horn of African mentees.

Method uThree methodological stages: vStage 1: National and international literature review vmentoring models and service provision for culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) groups, in particular Horn of Africans vStage 2: Semi-structured telephone interviews with key stakeholders (N = 13) vinvolved in mentoring, designing, implementing and/or funding mentoring programs, or vproviding community services specifically for Horn of Africans vStage 3: Focus groups with young Horn of African people and mentees v2 focus groups per state: NSW, Vic, and SA vN = 33 (19 males; 11 mentees; years old)

Results: areas of focus for culturally appropriate services u Three areas that need to be targeted to promote culturally appropriate service delivery: v organisational policies and practices, v supporting the mentor with a Horn of African mentee, and v supporting the young Horn of African mentee.

Results: organisational u Organisational policies and practices vRecruiting Horn of African or Arabic speaking staff vProviding cultural awareness training to staff vDeveloping partnerships with Horn of African community organisations and the local Horn of African community, and vIncluding Horn of African young people in the planning and design of mentoring programs

Results: mentor u Supporting the mentor with a Horn of African mentee vScreening mentors vRecruiting volunteers vCultural awareness training vList of relevant organisations and services vRelationship building exercises and activities, and vMonitoring and supervision

Results: mentee u Supporting the young Horn of African mentee vMentoring is most appropriate after immediate settlement needs have been met vConsider mentoring model vConsider length of contract, frequency of contact, and type of activities vConsider matching mentor and mentee vbased on race, gender, and age vEngaging their family, and vAssuring mentees of confidentiality, especially from their parents

Discussion uThese results provide clearly stated and practical ways for mentoring organisations to adapt their current models of service delivery to ensure that it is culturally appropriate for their young Horn of African mentees u The results may be used by: v mentors v mentoring program managers v mentoring policy makers v Horn of Africans community organisations v other service providers aiming to help facilitate their settlement in Australia, and v young Horn of African mentees and people

Conclusion uMentoring may be a useful tool for young Horn of Africans in Australia uMentoring may be able to: vprovide holistic support for their emotional, socio- cultural and/or resource-related settlement issues and needs, vequip young Horn of Africans with the know-how and confidence to fully participate in an Australian way of life, vfacilitate the on-going process of acculturation, and vincrease young people’s sense of social inclusion in Australia.

Further Information uWe would like to thank: our advisor Dr Elizabeth Cassity (University of Sydney); NYARS; the stakeholders interviewed; and young Horn of African people who participated in the focus groups uFor further information contact: Pooja Sawrikar uPlease if you would like to go on the list to receive a PDF copy of the report once it becomes