StepIn! Building Inclusive Societies through Active Citizenship. National Needs Analysis OVERALL NEEDS ANALYSIS REPORT

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1 StepIn! Building Inclusive Societies through Active Citizenship National Needs Analysis OVERALL NEEDS ANALYSIS REPORT

2 Overall Needs Report This report is based on the National Needs Analysis carried out in Germany, United Kingdom, Italy, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Slovenia and Sweden Table of contents 1. Introduction Methodology Status quo Best practice Migrants perspectives Host Countries Core Institutions SWOT-analysis... 9 Conclusion... 12

3 1. Introduction Step In! aims at developing, testing and disseminating innovative approaches, methods and materials to promote migrants active citizenship. Experts in seven European countries will cooperate for 24 months in order to design and test new approaches to strengthen civic, social and intercultural competences of migrants and members of ethnic minorities, members of receiving countries, esp. stakeholders of parties, NGOs, public authorities, adult learning professionals. Concrete results and outputs: Collecting examples of good practice Developing new methods and approaches Developing teaching aids Developing national and international in-service training courses for adult education staff The project s overall goal is to increase political participation and civic engagement of migrants and ethnic minorities and to promote an active citizenship. Active citizenship is linked to the acquisition of civic competences as part of transversal competence. Active Citizenship of migrants and members of ethnic minorities is regarded as an investment in the quality of democracy that and will inevitably result in higher representation at different level of power in the receiving country. The direct target group of this project are adult education providers. All materials and methods that are developed in the course of the project will be employed and used by adult education providers. However, the final beneficiaries are migrants and staff from host countries core institutions (Step In! Guideline). 2. Methodology In order to collect the data for the National Needs Analysis Reports separate questionnaires for migrants organisations and core host country s core institutions were developed and discussed at the first partner meeting, which took place in Hanover in January The accomplishment of the survey involved the translation of the questionnaires from English into the native language of the participating countries, sending the questionnaires to the surveyed institutions, collecting the completed questionnaires, analysing the data and summarizing core

4 findings in national needs analysis reports. StepIn! Building Inclusive Societies through Active Citizenship The Step In! project partners also responded to a third questionnaire on courses for migrants and good practices in their own countries. 3. Status quo It is noticeable that in most of the participating countries integration courses contain a high amount of language courses. In most of the surveyed countries learning the language is the highest priority concerning adult education for migrants. The second important priority is vocational education which shall improve the chances of migrants o get a (better) job. Training courses for migrants In Germany there are different courses for migrants. All courses consist of a high amount of language courses and only few hours for civic and social competences. In the UK there also different courses for migrants. The priority lies here in teaching skills for re-entering the labour market. Migrants in Italy can visit language courses which contain a few hours for the learning of civic and social competences. In Cyprus aren t any special courses for migrants, but migrants can participate in general adult education courses which are mainly language courses. Usually these courses don t contain lessons in civic and social competences. In Czech Republic there are courses for learning the Czech language, too. But there are also courses for the attainment of socio-cultural skills. These courses can be visited combined or separate. In Slovenia migrants can visit courses for language and for Slovenian culture, history and constitution, but there aren t enough courses for all migrants. In Sweden migrants can visit courses which contain language skills and knowledge about Swedish society. Political and economic situation The national integration policies are strongly influenced by political changes. E.g. in Slovenia

5 there is fear that the new right wing government might block the implementation of a new programme called Early Integration of Migrants (EIM). In Germany there will be national elections in 2013 which can deliver new more left majorities. In Italy there will also be national elections in the next year. Also changes in the economic situation can influence the integration policies as it will be possible in Czech Republic. In Cyprus there will be a change in the integration policy as a result of pressure to the government of different groups, but it is not determined in which direction the change will take place. Evaluation In most of the participaing countries there is no or only bad evaluation of the integration courses. For example, the integration courses in Germany were only evaluated once in 2006 which is already six years ago. 4. Best practice In the National Needs Analysis Reports examples of best practice were collected. At this juncture not all best practice can be presented in the Overall Needs Report, but there will be one example from each country. Germany Lokaler Integrationsplan Hannover (Local Integration Plan) (LIP) The council of Hannover adopted the LIP in Task of the LIP is to term aims, action fields and measures for better integration of migrants in the region of Hanover. Before the LIP was approved, the Mayor of Hannover founded an integration council in order to include the affected groups in the process of its development. Members of the integration council are migrants, politicians and representatives of the church, NGOs, unions and chambers (Hannover, 2012a). The LIP consists of six action fields such as education, economy, social policy, city life, democracy and city administration. Altogether the LIP provides 244 action approaches. The implementation of the action approaches is regularly evaluated and published in the internet (Hannover, 2012b).

6 United Kingdom The Bridges Programme 1 in Glasgow is a specialist agency aiming at supporting migrants in Glasgow in gaining work experience within their field of experience. The Bridges Programme offers numerous support and training for migrants including job tasting sessions, work shadowing, work experience, volunteering opportunities, mentoring opportunities and various training aiming improving migrants employability skills: communication skills, CV workshops, application support, mock interviews with employers, visits to employers, information interviews with employers, personal action planning and skills recognition. In addition, the organization actively engages with employers at every stage of migrants work placement and has developed specific parts of the programme with employers input and at their suggestions Italy Tutti dentro! - Young migrants and volunteering A project that promotes raising awareness actions for young migrants living in the area of Parma, actions that are aimed at making voluntary works an opportunities for active participation and real involvement in the hosting society. Czech Republic In Czech Republic there are different programs like: - Work in Czech systematic support of employment opportunities for refugees and foreigners with long-term residence in Czech Republic (SOZE, OPU) - Foreign assistent educational centre for long-term unemployed refugees and foreigners (SOZE) - Hezky česky (SOZE) Slovenia Early integration of migrants (EIM) education programme for migrants by the Slovernian Institute for Adult education 1 For further information:

7 The new programme to support migrants in the early stages of their stay in Slovenia was developed in 2009 on the initiative of the Ministry of Education and Sport. The aim of the programme is to enable immigrants to participate in and to integrate into Slovenian society. The programme comprises different modules such as Personal identity, Labour market and workplace, Public life, Economics etc. From the second half of 2012 the programme is envisaged to be available free of charge to migrants with residence in Slovenia and their family members. The programme costs are covered on the basis of public tender from European fund for the integration of third country nationals. Teachers in the programme for the early integration of migrants are required to attend the 24 hours training course, furthermore a handbook has been developed to support high quality of teaching. Sweden Introduction Guides (Etableringslotsar) Newly arrived migrants are able to receive help from an introduction guide. This guide could be an organization or a company working for the Public Employment Service (Arbetsförmedlingen). The guide s job is to help the migrants during their training activities. The guide may, for example, give the migrant practical help when he/she are looking for a job or give advice on social issues or on what type of training or profession is best for the migrant. The migrants choose the guide to help them and they plan the activities together. The Public Employment Service (Arbetsförmedlingen) will give the migrants information on the guides they can choose from. 5. Migrants perspectives Each partner from the UK, Cyprus, Czech Republic and Sweden sent ten questionnaires to migrants organisations. Migrant skills and knowledge about civic participation The organisations were asked what skills migrants must dispose of to participate in civil society. In all countries they answered that migrants must have knowledge and awareness of their rights and the meaning of civic engagement in the host country. Additionally they must have language skills. These areas - knowledge and awareness of rights and the meaning of

8 civic engagement and language skills were also identified as the main lacks of migrants regarding their skills and knowledge about civic participation. Besides this, the national need analysis shows clearly that there are many ways in which migrants organisations support migrant communities. This can happen through the promotion of and the engagement in cultural events or trainings aiming at raising awareness and understanding of the importance and the benefits of civic engagement. Barriers in migrants civic participation The migrants organisations were asked about the barriers in migrants civic participation. The most important barriers mentioned by the organisations are: First, the lack of knowledge and understanding of the legal system and their own rights and opportunities in civic engagement. Additionally, the economic resources of a person can restrain migrants from participating: Unemployment is a common reason for non-participation in civil society. Furthermore, a barrier can be that migrants mistrust civic organisations or have experienced structural discrimination which prevents them from participation. Finally, civic participation isn t a priority for all migrants. Lack of time or motivation can also be a barrier. 6. Host Countries Core Institutions In Germany there were eleven, in Italy, Cyprus and Slovenia ten questionnaires sent to host countries core institutions in order to find out about the reasons for high or low participation and employment of migrants within these institutions. The spectrum of institutions ranged from ministries, universities, schools, municipalities, and the police to public adult education providers, labour unions and employment services. Employment It is noticeable that in the interviewed institutions in Cyprus and Italy no migrants are being employed. In Slovenia only one of the interviewed institutions employs migrants whereas in Germany there are migrants working in all interviewed institutions. As far as they are employed, in all participating countries migrants work mainly in low paid jobs like in

9 canteens or cleaning services. StepIn! Building Inclusive Societies through Active Citizenship Only in Germany there are equal opportunity policies in the institutions surveyed. Reasons for low employment of migrants The institutions were asked for reasons for low employment of migrants and people with migrant background. A frequent answer was that often the citizenship of the host country is needed to be employed in an authority. Another reason is the educational attainment of migrants. For many jobs the passing of various examinations is in demand. Also the job requirements are marked as a reason for low employment of migrants, because migrants might not apply for a job if they feel not empowered enough to gain such a job. And finally, the lack of language skills is also seen as a reason for low employment of migrants and people with migrant background. Barriers of migrants employment The surveyed institutions mentioned various barriers in migrants employment. First, the citizenship can be a barrier, because only citizens are allowed to work in specific institutions (authorities) or to work at all. Also the language is often a barrier in migrants employment. And finally a high barrier in migrants employment are the necessary exams. Some institutions declared that they would need training in the field of intercultural communication. 7. SWOT-analysis SWOT analysis is a tool that identifies the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of an organisation, process, project, etc. SWOT is a basic, straightforward model that assesses what in the concrete sense the Step In! consortium can and cannot do as well as its potential opportunities and threats. The method of SWOT analysis is to take the information from an environmental analysis and separate it into internal (strengths and weaknesses) and external issues (opportunities and threats). SWOT analysis determines what may assist the consortium in accomplishing its objectives, and what obstacles must be overcome or minimised to achieve desired results.

10 The SWOT analysis presented here groups the information from the seven countries' National Needs Analyses into four clusters and from the point of view of the Step In! project goals: S(trengths) circumstances, real situations, existing evidence, etc. in the partner countries which make the basis for assured success of Step In! goals and outcomes; W(eakness) circumstances, real situations, existing evidence, etc. in the partner countries which make reaching the Step In! goals and outcomes difficult and doubtful; O(pportunities) chances, motives, different types of readiness, etc. with the potential to support reaching the Step In! goals and outcomes; T(hreats) situations, obstacles, dangers, conditions, etc. that may block or damage reaching the project goals and outcomes. Strengths The first strength to be mentioned is the project consortium itself. Iit provides expertise and competences from different kinds of institutions, countries, networks and backgrounds. The second is the project plan. The consortium has a well structured guideline which contains of time schedules, monitoring, evaluation and other mechanisms which will ensure the best possible results. Another strength is the support by the EU. The project is securely funded for the whole project period which means that the consortium can concentrate on the substantial work. Weaknesses One possible weakness could be the enduring challenge to find a common language. The fact that the consortium consists of partners from different countries and backgrounds provides the need for compromises and the will to find a common basis to talk about the projects subjects properly. The different national backgrounds of the consortium can complicate to define and clarify important subjects of the project (e.g.: the question how the status migrant can be defined is not answered in the same way in the different countries involved in the project).

11 Opportunities Integration is a big issue in all participating countries. Although the standards and the concrete way of dealing with it may differ from country to country the need to deal with the question of integration and migration is acknowledged everywhere. This means that the Step In! project can easily be linked to an already existing discourse. The fact that many of the surveyed institutions indicate that they want to employ migrants but also see several problems, proves that there is specific need for education offers like those Step In! will provide. The fact that many courses for migrants are language courses can be seen as a strength for the Step In! project, because language skill are to be seen as a precondition for successful civic participation. Threats Looking at all education offers for migrants it must be seen that there are only few courses for civic and social competences and that most of the offers aim at language skills and vocational training. This makes it difficult for projects like Step In! to assert itself on the education market as a whole because their might not be the demand for it. There are seven countries involved in the Step In! project. Partly the countries differ substantially in their national backgrounds, e.g. in their political and legal situation, in their political culture and their historical self-concept. This means that the success of the project could be threatened if the consortium fails to develop one education offer which must be appropriate for and accomplishable in all countries involved. Another weakness could be seen in the fact that there are no standards or a common system for civic education offers for migrants in Europe. That makes it more difficult to realize education offers that will be accepted and meet the needs in all participating countries. Political changes like the change of governments, changes in the legal situation or public

12 spending cuts can also be seen as a threat to the project. Conclusion The National Needs Analysis has generated various results: According to the current state of adult education for migrants it is noticeable that most of the offers for migrants deal with language and vocational training. It also became clear that the political and economic situation, also influenced by the current financial crisis, might have a strong impact (positive or negative) on national education policies. Another result of the survey was that current adult education offerings are badly evaluated. This means that it is difficult to learn from already existing programs, because it cannot be clarified if they work properly or not. Concerning the migrants perspectives the analysis has shown that migrants lack of skills for successful participation is closely linked to the main barriers for participation: knowledge and awareness of rights and the meaning of civic engagement as well as language skills. But the needs analysis has also shown that there are already existing forms and programs how migrants and migrant communities can be supported (best practice). Concerning the employment of migrants in host countries core institutions the analysis illustrated that the amount of employed migrants seems to differ from country to country. A common pattern in all countries is that migrants mainly work in lower positions. The reason for the low employment rates of migrants can be seen in legal barriers (citizenship), educational barriers (language skills, exams for specific positions), and lack of self-confidence (empowerment). As the SWOT-Analysis has shown, the conditions to carry out a successful project are good (consortium, project plan, EU, big issue of integration etc.). But there had also been problems identified which should be considered in the further process (national differences in integration policies, political changes etc.).

13 Recommendations: 1. To develop an education offer suitable to the subject, the target groups, and the involved countries the consortium should have a general discussion about the results of the needs analysis in order to find out about national differences/similarities concerning the issue of integration/participation and civic education for migrants. 2. The consortium should have a general discussion on the development of the workshop modules in order to clarify the structure, common contents etc. which shall be part of all modules. 3. The consortium should discuss all single modules, to ensure that the expertise and also the specific demands of the partners involved are considered and can be integrated in the development of the modules.

StepIn! Building Inclusive Societies through Active Citizenship. National Needs Analysis SWEDEN. Adult Education Providers

StepIn! Building Inclusive Societies through Active Citizenship National Needs Analysis SWEDEN Adult Education Providers Existing training courses for migrants in Sweden Sfi (Swedish for immigrants) is