Immigrants and refugees, the various support and integration projects designed and coordinated by UNHCR and Intersos

ROMA – There are language and digital training courses for refugee people forced to flee conflict zones and those on reproductive and sexual health dedicated to women who have survived violence and exploitation. The community theater and holistic and sustainable creativity workshops, the support desks for accessing studies designed for Afghan refugees, the intercultural dialogue workshops. And again, psychosocial support groups, cooking workshops and artistic and cultural itineraries to discover the local area.

The various projects of the Associations. This – and much more – will be the projects developed by the associations that are supported by this year Participationthe Capacity Building Support Programme UNHCR e INTERSOS for refugee associations in Italy, now in its seventh edition.

Diaspora Students Association Africana. The project – ASDA – it’s called “Art as a work of integration” and aims to make refugees and asylum seekers aware of the beauty and artistic treasures of the city of Naples and the Campania region through collective processing and sharing. With preliminary meetings, refugees and asylum seekers involved in the journey will create an artistic and cultural journey together, which will take the form of artistic walks and outings in the area. The subsequent meetings – dedicated to collecting impressions and suggestions on what was seen – will be the basis for the creation of a brochure dedicated to the story of the project. A final event will close the activities.

Afghan refugees. An informal group of female and male refugees from Afghanistan – engaged in the project AWA – active in Milan with socio-cultural support activities for the Afghan community in the area with the support of Participation will be formally registered and become an association, in order to be able to expand its activities, with a specific focus on the dissemination of information, in particular with respect to housing orientation.

“Akugbe: let’s walk together”. It’s a project – Women of Benin City – dedicated to inclusion andempowerment within the socio-cultural fabric of Palermo of women refugees and asylum seekers who, very often, do not find space and opportunities to express themselves and enhance their skills and who find it difficult to access social, educational and health services. The activities include the strengthening of the listening and orientation desk for the association’s services, workshops on reproductive and sexual health, family relationships, care and reception of children, and a cooking laboratory aimed at knowledge and consumption of the products premises, with the participation of a professional chef and a nutritionist.

Inclusion in the school system. Focused on the inclusion of Afghan men and women within the Italian education system, often undermined by linguistic and cultural barriers, the project – NOWROZ – by title “Art and education for community growth” wants to promote access to study courses and facilitate the socio-educational integration of students from the community of Rome, with particular attention to the theme of equality and increased capabilities for women. These objectives will be achieved through the organization of multiple activities: a community theater workshop – to explore the theme of identity and create artistic connections -; educational support and individualized accompaniment; creation of reception paths for Afghan women in order to facilitate their access to studies. A final event, presenting the association and the project implemented, will conclude the activities in August.

“The art of healing”. He is driven by the awareness that the social inclusion of refugees and migrants also involves attention to mental health and sustainable well-being in communities, and he wants to respond concretely – through the project Sensi Holistic Creative Agency – the adaptation, personal growth and support needs of female and male refugees in Rome. A sustainable holistic creativity laboratory, a socio-psychological support group, a series of guided tours among the artistic beauties of the Capital and two intercultural dialogue workshops will mark the phases of the project. All activities will be documented and, thanks to the collaboration with a director, a video documentary will be produced and presented during the final event.

Born from the desire to promote the socio-cultural integration and empowerment of refugee people, the project – SSAW – “Linguistic and digital training courses” aims to remove linguistic barriers and the lack of digital skills that often limit access to the job market and social cohesion in the territory of origin. The project activities include the organization of English and Italian language courses and digital training courses. At the end of the course, a networking event will be held in Milan between the participants and local associations.