Newsletter Issue No. 18 March 2015
International Organization for Migration Country Office for Austria Editorial
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IOM is actively engaged in the World Humanitarian Summit – an initiative aimed at bringing the global community together to commit to a new agenda for humanitarian action beyond 2016.
Editorial……………………………………….1
In a world in which millions of people are affected by conflict and forced migration, and where global trends such as climate change, urbanization and population growth constitute new challenges, we have to re-think humanitarian action. Moreover, humanitarian work has never been more risky than today with record numbers of humanitarian workers becoming victims of violence in 2013.
Resettlement……………..………………..1 Headstart……………………………....……2 New trainings through IOM......……2 AVRR Nigeria..…………………...….…….3 EMN Publications…………….……….....4
To find answers to these issues, the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will convene the first World Humanitarian Summit in Istanbul, Turkey, in May 2016. The Summit aims to build a more inclusive and diverse humanitarian system by bringing all key stakeholders together to share best practices and find innovative ways to make humanitarian action more effective and less risky. The process is being managed by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). IOM is part of the global discussion and our goal is to highlight migration-specific issues and incorporate the voices of affected populations. OCHA emphasizes the fact that this is a once in a generation opportunity – it is a call for new thinking, not on how to adjust the existing system. We are very proud to be part of this opportunity!
Katerina Kratzmann, Head of Office
The Austrian Humanitarian Admission Programme Austria's response to the Syrian refugee crisis In the light of the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Syria and its persisting influx of Syrian refugees into the neighboring countries, the Austrian government in summer 2013 declared to initiate a Humanitarian Admission Programme (HAP I) by resettling 500 Syrian refugees to Austria. In spring 2014, the Austrian government decided to expand the programme by introducing HAP II, adding another 1,000 resettlement places.
www.migrantscontribute.com
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Both programmes, HAP I and HAP II, follow a twofold approach regarding the admission of eligible refugees: one share of the contingent is dedicated to UNHCR quotarefugees who are already registered in the region. For the other share, the Christian community was invited to suggest Christian Syrian refugees with family ties to Austria. Additionally, the possibility of direct application for refugees with family members in Austria was introduced during HAP II. The final decision in the selection process lies with the Federal Ministry of the Interior. IOM’s role is to organize the transfer of the refugees to Austria and, since HAP II, also to deliver pre-arrival Cultural Orientation Trainings in the transit countries. HAP I was completed in December 2014 with a total of 504 refugees being resettled. HAP II has started only recently with the first arrivals in October 2014 amounting to 202 refugees from the civil society quota so far. First arrivals of refugees submitted by the UNHCR are to be expected by the beginning of May 2015. All 1,000 refugees of HAP II should be resettled by the end of 2015.
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Pre-Integration: Headstart Project & Closing Conference The project “Headstart – Fostering Integration before Departure” aims to enhance the capacity of service providers in countries of origin to deliver pre-departure integration services to third-country nationals migrating to the EU. © IOM
Austrian partners contributing to the Expo in Rome, sharing their experiences and presenting good practice examples.
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The project team was warmly welcomed at CNAI in Lisbon.
On 24-25 September 2014 the workshop and expo on "Migrant Integration before Departure: Perspectives, Approaches and Supporting Measures" took place in Rome. This key event provided a unique opportunity to the more than 80 participants, coming from over 30 countries, to discuss predeparture integration initiatives on a broad level and sharing their own perspectives and experiences. The two-day event concluded with an expo where over 20 organizations held individual booths and exhibited their projects and initiatives. Several Austrian partners, such as the Austrian Ministry of Europe, Integration and Foreign Affairs, the Austrian Integration Fund as well as the Federal Ministry of Science, Research and Economy contributed to this event. Further, the project partners met on 12 November 2014 for a coordination meeting in Lisbon. The aim was to reflect on the project deliverables so far and to discuss the outline of the handbook on Migrant Resource Centres. Moreover, the whole project team was invited to visit a one-stop-shop, the CNAI (National Centre for Migrant Support) to learn from their experiences. The final activity, the project closing conference, will take place in Vienna on 21 May 2015. You will read more about its outcomes in the next edition of our newsletter! We invite our readers to consult the Headstart project website (www.headstartproject.eu) for a global review on pre-departure integration measures and a handbook for Migrant Resource Centers, which will be published soon. This project is co-financed by the European Refugee Fund and the Austrian Federal Ministry of the Interior.
New Trainings Available through IOM Vienna! As spring quickly approaches, IOM Vienna is happy to announce a number of trainings that will be taking place in the coming months.
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IOM Vienna has a long-standing experience in conducting workshops.
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For starters, we are now offering a wider palate of trainings on how to identify trafficked persons. Through past trainings to actors in the Austrian asylum procedure, we realized that a large number of Austrian stakeholders that work with migrants are interested in increasing their abilities to recognize potential victims in their daily work. The new trainings have been conceptualized to meet the needs of each group of trainees so as to maximize the applicability of the contact in practice. Our main aim is to reach actors in the healthcare sector and institutions that provide counselling services to migrants. Additionally, we are currently working on a number of project proposals that should hopefully again expand our available trainings. Specifically, we plan to continue our well-established cultural orientation trainings, expand our counter-trafficking trainings in the area of asylum, and begin new trainings for international students. We will keep you informed about new training sessions.
“Assistance for the Voluntary Return and Reintegration of Returnees to Nigeria” (AVRR Nigeria) came to an end After five and a half years, the AVRR Nigeria project, co-financed by the Austrian Federal Ministry of the Interior and the European Return Fund, ended in December 2014. There were five project phases in total, the first of which started on 1 September 2009. In the framework of the project, a total of 198 voluntary returnees received reintegration support in Nigeria. The majority of project participants, 182, were male, 16 were female. The main goal of the project was to assist the beneficiaries to start a sustainable income generating activity so that they could better re-establish themselves in the Nigerian economy and society. © IOM
Reintegration measures – as diverse as the beneficiaries themselves The project offered in-kind reintegration assistance (in the last project phase up to an amount of EUR 4000) to voluntary returnees from Austria to Nigeria. A large share of the project beneficiaries used their reintegration grant to set up a small business or a service company; a smaller share used the grant to acquire further education. The chosen business types were just as diverse as the returnees themselves: Amongst male beneficiaries, the set-up of a business in the area of transportation was very popular while the female participants frequently invested their grant in hair and beauty salons. In addition, many small shops were founded by the beneficiaries, e.g. for the sale of food, spare parts, plastic flowers, baby clothes, timber, building materials, agricultural equipment, etc. Vulnerable project participants such as trafficked persons, single parents, or persons with a medical condition were able to receive additional assistance in the form of medical support, temporary accommodation and/or assistance for the care of their children.
Impressions from Nigeria
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Street view in Lagos
IOM in Austria and Nigeria: Establishing a relationship of trust with the beneficiaries The IOM Austria and Nigeria project staff was in regular contact with the participants in order to guarantee that the reintegration assistance was tailored to meet their needs. From these direct contacts, IOM gained many insights into the bittersweet emotions that beneficiaries went through in the course of their return experience. The courage and the will of the beneficiaries to restart their lives were impressive and many of the stories they told are very memorable. The story of Mr. O. who returned to Nigeria in July 2014 is a very good example for that. Mr. O’s return story: “Time will wait for no one – But today is still early” Mr. O. is a young, ambitious man with business experience in the sale of computer accessories. After spending two and a half years in Austria, he realized that it would be difficult for him to find an attractive job and therefore decided to voluntarily return to Nigeria. After his return, he opened a shop at the Lagos “Computer Village Market”, using the IOM reintegration assistance for the purchase of computer accessories such as computer mice, web cameras, keyboards, etc. Mr. O. had no permanent place to stay in Lagos and in order to ensure that he would be able to concentrate on the establishment of his business, he was granted additional assistance for accommodation. Mr. O. pointed out that the reintegration assistance was a “big hope” and the accommodation assistance was “extremely helpful” for him. Mr. O. plans to stay in Lagos and to expand his business. He would like to marry. Mr. O. is sure that he will have better prospects in Nigeria than in Austria, and he is happy that he did not waste more time in Europe, because “time will wait for no one – but today is still early”.
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Mr. O. in his market stall
This project is co-financed by the Austrian Federal Ministry of the Interior and the European Return Fund.
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New publications The IOM Country Office for Austria recently published three new EMN studies. These studies address Austrian policies and practices with respect to return, unaccompanied minors and admission of third-country nationals for business purposes. The results of each of these studies will be incorporated into comparative synthesis reports which will provide an overview of the legislation, practices and statistics regarding the individual topics across Member States. Furthermore, EMN Informs summarizing the synthesis reports will also be published in English and translated into German. All studies, synthesis reports and informs are available for download at www.emn.at.
EMN Study: Unaccompanied Minors in Legislation, Practices and Statistics (2014)
Austria
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The focus of this study is on the current state of unaccompanied minors (UAM) in Austria with regard to legislation and practices. The study also presents available statistics on this topic. A number of relevant areas are covered: entry, residence, asylum procedure, age assessment, guardianship, legal advice, accommodation, reception conditions, health care, education, vocational training, employment, integration support, absconding, legal age, return and reintegration. Thereby, the study highlights developments in these areas that took place over the last five years, between 2010 and 2014.
EMN Study: Admitting Third-Country Nationals for Business Purposes in Austria (2014) This study provides an analysis of the conditions in place in Austria that regulate the admission for business purposes from third-countries. Specifically it addresses three broad areas: the admission of non- EU investors and of non-EU business owners who are not yet resident in the EU, and the admission of other third-country national business persons who travel to the EU. Thereby, the study elaborates on the Austrian framework and focuses particularly on the Austrian "Red-White-Red Card" system.
EMN Study: Austria’s Return Policy: Application of Entry Bans Policy and Use of Readmission Agreements (2014) This research paper describes the role of entry bans and readmission agreements to support Austria's return policy. Legal regulations concerning entry bans are examined, particularly in connection with return decisions. Various aspects regarding the practical application of entry bans are also analyzed. After providing a comprehensive overview of existing readmission agreements, some challenges in their implementation are discussed. Finally, possible synergies between entry bans and readmission agreements on the one hand, and reintegration assistance on the other hand, are also explored. The National Contact Point Austria in the EMN is financially supported by the European Commission and the Austrian Federal Ministry of the Interior.
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