The advanced planning visit for the project From Expats to Experts: United Civil Society through Inclusion and Empowerment of Young Immigrants (FETE) was held from 1st to 2nd December 2014 in Sliema, Malta.
FETE is a two year project co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme, Key Action 2 – Strategic Partnerships in the field of Youth. The project involves 4 partners: Crossing Borders (Denmark – Coordinator), CESIE (Italy), People for Change Foundation (Malta) and CNAM Conservatoire national des arts et métiers – Pays de la Loire (France).
During the Advance Planning Visit, representatives from each partner organisation met to discuss the implementation of the project. The partnership shared best practices in supporting the inclusion of young immigrants and also investigated the challenges and opportunities for adopting an inclusion strategy in each country based on the national context.
The aim of the project which will be completed in August 2016 is to provide sixty 18-30 year old first generation immigrants with the opportunity to gain and improve work experience and soft skills, take ownership and work on small scale projects beneficial for local communities in the four partner countries – Malta, Italy, France and Denmark. In addition, the project aims at capacity building of NGOs, social enterprises and public institutions in order to create space for dialogue about positive impacts of international immigration in civil society.
The participants will have an opportunity to participate in a 6 month long training programme. They will participate in skill building workshops, then gain experience in an internship in local enterprises and businesses and some of the participants will be trained to be Youth Ambassadors for Diversity and Youth Empowerment, not only practicing their skills but also helping the local community to tackle their problems. This opportunity will help participants gain work experience in Europe and provide awareness about positive impacts of migration. At first the training will happen in Malta then it will be implemented in France, Italy and Denmark.
FETE is implemented in four parts:
- Conducting research about a successful inclusion strategy in order to develop a best practice model for labor market inclusion of young immigrants and building bridges between them and the local community
- Developing a strategy (Inclusion in Action: Step by Step Guide for Immigrant Youth Inclusion in Local Communities) based on the research findings, which will be implemented and tested in Malta first and the partners will implement the adapted and new strategy in Italy, France and Denmark
- Carrying out a mentoring programme for continuous assistance for the young immigrants and the development of a best practice model for mentors of young immigrants in Europe
- Disseminating the strategy ‘Inclusion in Action’ based on theoretical research and practical implementation in 4 European countries as well as the Guidelines for mentor
As a result of the activities planned during the project, FETE aims to create a common “Inclusion in Action” strategy that at the same time takes into account country-specific differences for the benefit of all European countries. The strategy will be implemented in four cities in the four different European countries thus providing a best practice model for inclusion under different conditions in Europe.
The first phase of the project is dedicated to a research and study analysis which will include interviews with the target group of young immigrants as well as NGOs, enterprises and community members. At a later stage, round table discussions on immigration will take place in Palermo and the other cities of the partner countries with participants and stakeholders to discuss immigration, best practices and share the results of the project. A final public debate will be held in Copenhagen in February 2016 and attended by all partners to present facts and figures of migration in Europe, offer discussion panels and communication on positive effects of migration as well as presenting the final project results and its impact.
The partnership believes that the project will help to raise awareness of the positive impacts of immigration and its significant positive beneficial opportunities for local communities. The project will aim to empower young immigrants and challenge stereotypes through providing a new approach to inclusion.
For further information about the project FETE, please contact: rosina.ndukwe@cesie.org
