According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), there are 65 million people worldwide who have been forcibly displaced from their homes, of whom about one in three are refugees escaping from conflict and persecution. In 2015, over 1 million people made their way to the EU as refugees, displaced people and other migrants (European Commission, 2016). Accordingly, there are a number of reports that highlight that the European Union is now facing an unprecedented displacement crisis because of violent conflicts, natural disasters, demographic shifts and economic change elsewhere in the world. Available evidence highlights that there is great diversity within this group of people moving to the EU in terms of motivations, previous experiences, age, gender and stage of their life cycle. This diversity, coupled with the increasing number of refugees and migrants, poses a key challenge to member states across the EU in terms of how to effectively manage migrant flows and integrate refugees and migrants into host communities and the labour market, in accordance with economic and social needs of the country. A review of current research and policies highlights that technology is increasingly being used to facilitate the integration of refugees and migrants with host communities and the labour market. The EC Action Plan (2016) on the integration of third country nationals recognises the need to harness the innovative use of technology, social media and the Internet at all stages of the integration process. Available evidence highlights that the uptake/use of technology by refugees and migrants is influenced by prior exposure to technologies, motivations for use, ability to access resources, literacy levels, norms surrounding the use of technology in the host community and gender (Leung, 2009). Technology not only provides an opportunity for refugees and migrants to maintain relationships and friends and families, it also provides a route to raising awareness about the challenges they face and it makes it easier to receive assistance and build ‘bridging’ social capital with others (Calhoun, 2010). Whilst technology, such as smart phones, is providing a tool for refugees and migrants to communicate with family and friends, it can also be used by them to take control of their integration into the host community and develop their own learning and skills. For example, technology can be used to gain information on available resources and support services and access financial assistance and services. In addition, technology has a role to play in the delivery of education and training. At the moment, technology has been used to support the delivery of basic education and training including the use of computers and computer skills, numeracy, literacy and language training. However, others have suggested that there is scope for technology to be used to facilitate the delivery of other forms of education and training/learning and skills development such as cultural awareness and enterprise and entrepreneurship education. Using technology to deliver such provision would enable refugees and migrants to: • Effectively integrate in the mid to long term • Provide an understanding of how to transition from the informal to formal economy, thereby adding value to the local economy • Further develop transferable skills. The use of technology to deliver enterprise and entrepreneurship education not only empowers the refugee and migrant to make choices about their own learning, it also provides training providers and those organisations working with refuges and migrants with a providing a cost-effective solution to the delivery of both formal and informal learning and skills provision. This proposal is developed in response to such evidence and will develop enterprise learning and skills curriculum which can be delivered to refugees using appropriate technologies (e.g. smart phones). In so doing, the project will: • Undertake a needs analysis of refugees in terms of enterprise learning and skills development needs and the responses required to address these needs • Map the ways in which technology is currently used to deliver enterprise leaning and skills development, in order to identify what works well and what works less well • Develop enterprise learning and skills curriculum for refugees and pilot the delivery of the curriculum using different technologies • Create case studies of how enterprising learning and skills development has assisted refugees to effectively integrate into host communities and the labour market • Work with learning and training providers and bodies working with refugees to enhance their understanding of, and develop capacity in using technology to deliver enterprise learning and skills development to refugees
Migrants and refugees often face difficulties, and even discrimination, when searching for jobs and accessing local labour markets. The economic integration of migrants is one of the priorities of the EU's comprehensive approach to migration. In this context entrepreneurship can open doors for the integration of migrants by overcoming these barriers. It is crucial to empower legal migrants and refugees to develop their skills and to get access to knowledge and support that can enable them to build a solid livelihood and create added value. This should include the possibility of becoming entrepreneurs, accessing the host country labour market and thus contributing to further job creation. Entrepreneurship is one of the proven ways to ensure the integration and the economic independence of migrants. ON-D-GO - Developing the Employability Skills of Displaced Persons is an Erasmus+ project that sought to support the economic integration of migrants through the creation of a tailored migrant entrepreneurship training programme. The Project recognised that migrant populations continue to grow across Europe and there is an ongoing need to better integrate these communities into economic and social life in member states. Considering the potential positive contributions migrant entrepreneurs can make to society, it was in the interest of partner organisations to support migrants wishing to establish their own business. It is, however, important to recognise that migrants are an extremely diverse group. As such, ON-D-GO recognised the need to appropriately inform and thoughtfully plan the learning supports in order to address the different motivations, needs, previous experiences, age, gender and life cycle stage of the target group. To address this, the Project has designed and developed a training programme and flexible support resources targeted at VET trainers seeking to develop the employability skills of nascent and start-up migrant entrepreneurs and to support their learning ‘on the go’. Underpinning the development and delivery of our entrepreneurship programme is the use of technology. A review of current research and policies, coupled with local technology mapping with our target groups, established that technology is increasingly being used to facilitate the integration of refugees and migrants with host communities and the labour market. The EC Action Plan (2016) on the integration of third country nationals recognises the need to harness the innovative use of technology, social media and the Internet at all stages of the integration process - a need that the ON-D-GO project tried to facilitate. Technology not only provides an opportunity for refugees and migrants to maintain relationships with friends and families, it also makes it easier to receive assistance, access information and in some cases take control of their integration into the host community and develop their own learning and skills. The ON-D-GO project used technology to deliver enterprise and entrepreneurship education not only to empower refugees and migrants to make choices about their own learning, but also to provide VET training providers and those organisations working with refugees and migrants with a cost-effective solution to deliver both formal and informal learning and skills provision. Over the 24 months of the project, we have delivered the following activities: • Supported the continuous professional development of VET professionals and migrant support workers in the fields of migrant integration education, entrepreneurship and mobile learning • Completed a training needs analysis with refugees in terms of enterprise learning and skills development and the responses required to address these needs. Once established these needs were benchmarked against the EU Entre-Comp Framework • Mapped the ways in which technology is currently used to deliver enterprise leaning and skills development, in order to identify what works well and what works less well, using the prior expertise of project partners • Developed an enterprise learning and skills curriculum for refugees and piloted the delivery of the curriculum using different methodologies with 243 migrants and refugees across Europe • Created a library of case studies documenting how enterprising learning and skills development has assisted refugees to effectively integrate into host communities and the labour market • Trained 80 VET professionals and trainers working with refugees to enhance their understanding of, and develop their capacity in using technology to deliver enterprise learning and skills development to refugees.