On May 29 and 30, 2024, the event CENTRAL & EASTERN EUROPEAN NETWORK FOR MIGRATION & INCLUSION BRATISLAVA GATHERING organized by EPIM (European Philanthropic Initiative for Migration) took place in Bratislava.
The event's goal was to address the question of how to build inclusive societies in the region and what is necessary for living and healthy democracies. The present time puts us in front of many challenges that we have to face and migration is one of the main ones. Only how we approach them will ultimately mean whether an opportunity or a problem awaits us. Therefore, at the event, participating organizations that deal with migration and subsequent inquisition presented their real experiences and views on the issue.
Among the basic discussed questions to which the participants tried to find answers was the question of changing society's approach to migrants to see and assess them comprehensively (holistically) and not only from the point of view of their economic benefit or burden on society. Practical questions were directed to removing various barriers (social, economic, cultural, religious) where there was room for presentations of various practical solutions and proposals.
Among the most inspiring presentations of this time of the event was the presentation of the Med-Integro project, which is being created with the support of the EU within the framework of Erasmus Plus, and the main author of the whole idea, Alona Kurotová, spoke with it. This project is a guide to a practical solution for a selected group of migrants who are healthcare workers. The paradox is that our entire region suffers from a long-term lack of qualified medical personnel, and despite this, the inclusion of these people is difficult and often completely pointlessly complicated. From our point of view, the successful inclusion of foreigners in our society is possible only if these people feel welcome, valued, supported and respected here. We found that we need a system of integration or inclusion for foreign and returning health workers, that's why the Medintegro project was created. It combines 4 parts: a relocation system, where foreign health workers could be welcomed, employees are respected, a community that supports them, and e-learning modules that make them more valued. We know that every part is important, it is not only about the language. It is clear to us that this project deals with only a selected small group of highly qualified migrants, but in the subsequent discussions, it became clear that it can be a suitable basis and tool for a systemic solution to the inclusion of much wider group migrants, mainly from the point of view of the lack of labour and the ageing of the population both in our region and throughout Europe.
We believe that just such inspiring events will help us together to turn a problem into an opportunity, and our thanks, therefore, go to the organizers as well as to all the participants of the event.
The event's goal was to address the question of how to build inclusive societies in the region and what is necessary for living and healthy democracies. The present time puts us in front of many challenges that we have to face and migration is one of the main ones. Only how we approach them will ultimately mean whether an opportunity or a problem awaits us. Therefore, at the event, participating organizations that deal with migration and subsequent inquisition presented their real experiences and views on the issue.
Among the basic discussed questions to which the participants tried to find answers was the question of changing society's approach to migrants to see and assess them comprehensively (holistically) and not only from the point of view of their economic benefit or burden on society. Practical questions were directed to removing various barriers (social, economic, cultural, religious) where there was room for presentations of various practical solutions and proposals.
Among the most inspiring presentations of this time of the event was the presentation of the Med-Integro project, which is being created with the support of the EU within the framework of Erasmus Plus, and the main author of the whole idea, Alona Kurotová, spoke with it. This project is a guide to a practical solution for a selected group of migrants who are healthcare workers. The paradox is that our entire region suffers from a long-term lack of qualified medical personnel, and despite this, the inclusion of these people is difficult and often completely pointlessly complicated. From our point of view, the successful inclusion of foreigners in our society is possible only if these people feel welcome, valued, supported and respected here. We found that we need a system of integration or inclusion for foreign and returning health workers, that's why the Medintegro project was created. It combines 4 parts: a relocation system, where foreign health workers could be welcomed, employees are respected, a community that supports them, and e-learning modules that make them more valued. We know that every part is important, it is not only about the language. It is clear to us that this project deals with only a selected small group of highly qualified migrants, but in the subsequent discussions, it became clear that it can be a suitable basis and tool for a systemic solution to the inclusion of much wider group migrants, mainly from the point of view of the lack of labour and the ageing of the population both in our region and throughout Europe.
We believe that just such inspiring events will help us together to turn a problem into an opportunity, and our thanks, therefore, go to the organizers as well as to all the participants of the event.