4 ONE ANOTHER – Supporting the inclusion of unaccompanied minors

Issues

Europe is facing the most serious migration challenge since the end of the Second World War. The unexpected arrival of refugees and irregular migrants in the EU has highlighted the EU’s shortcomings and policy gaps in the areas of asylum, external borders and migration.

According to Eurostat data, in 2019, more than 715,000 applications for international protection were lodged in the EU, an increase of 13% compared to 2018. The annual report on children in migration, published by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, estimates that in 2019 around 33,000 children (of which more than 5,000 were unaccompanied) reached the EU’s external land or sea borders. Migrating children are more vulnerable than adults, especially when they are unaccompanied.

The large presence of MENA and the increasing number of them over 18 years of age, has highlighted the need to better understand the measures and possibilities for protection and inclusion of these populations and to accompany them more effectively in their transition to adulthood.

Cultural mediators and social workers are professionals in close contact with MENA. They are solid points of reference in the process of legal and social integration. It is therefore fundamental that they have the best skills and competences to support MENA and respond to their specific needs, including national and international legal frameworks, knowledge of different migration contexts, psychological conditions, medical issues, social and cultural contexts, etc.

Objectives

In order to respond to the needs and gaps in the knowledge and skills of professionals, the consortium of 4 ONE ANOTHER wants to develop a training programme whose objective is to offer professionals different tools to:

Support the integration process of MENA (legal obstacles, administrative challenges);
Fill the gaps in the skills and competences of professionals in reception and replacement;
Provide psychosocial support (trauma, stress…), including the ability to detect early signs of distress;
Supporting a successful acculturation and integration process;
Supporting the transition to adulthood and their pathway to independence, whether in terms of housing, employment, education, etc;
Supporting the search for and choice of educational pathways and learning opportunities,
Informing citizens to facilitate the inclusion of MENA, through the promotion of communication and awareness-raising campaigns, to dismantle existing prejudices and fears that contribute to making their acceptance in society more difficult.