We present you the 5th issue of the Information Newsletter “Integration of refugees in Bulgaria”  for the period January – March 2021

The issue contains the following information:

*The integration of refugees as an opportunity for development – the meaning of the integration

*Presenting the New UNHCR Representative in Bulgaria

*Overview of the integration of refugees in Bulgaria in 2020 – successes and challenges in the background of the pandemic

*Sofia – City of tolerance. Student internships in refugee assisting NGOs

* Digital Students Lab – the new platform presenting students articles and translations on refugee related topics developed during their internships

* The COVID-19 vaccination campaign and the refugees

*Refugee Compass: The new web app for online consultations on refugee integration and access to rights

*SOS COVID-19 Emergency Information for Refugees – Manual for information on, and prevention of COVID-19

*Empowering Business Community – a new initiative for development of business community supportive of refugees

*International training session by the BCCI on refugee and migrant integration on the labour market

*Refugee from Yemen supports Bulgarian family in need

*The story of Linda and Freddy – to give and get support

*The International Experience on Integration: Analysis of the Refugee Integration in V4

* The international expertise: Housing Solutions in Slovakia and the Czech Republic.

*Inclusion of migrants in the labor market and the UNDP programme for sustainable development

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Other publications

Within the NIEM Project, the Bulgarian Council on Refugees and Migrants as a member of the Community of Interests at the EU level within the project  ‘LIME – Labour Integration for Migrants Employment’ present to your attention online event “Migrants’ Labor Market Inclusion: Activation of Networks and Clusters” – the French case study.

This workshop session is conceived to present relevant projects and interventions implemented in the field of migrants’ labour inclusion and to discuss models of intervention concerning the activation of networks and cluster to foster access to the labour market for TCNs, including asylum seekers and refugees.

The LIME project organizes a workshop that will be held ONLINE on the 17th March 2021 from 9:30 to 13.30.

The event will be held in English, but translation in Italian, French, and Spanish will be available.

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The Bulgarian Council on Refugees and Migrants presents to your attention the analysis “The role of local governments in the integration of refugees in the V4 countries”

This analysis, developed in the framework of the V4NIEM project by authors from all four countries, endeavors to give an overview of the possibilities and limitations of local authorities in the topic of the integration of beneficiaries of international protection . It continues the comparative approach set by the project’s previous publication, “Asylum Seekers and Beneficiaries of International Protection in V4 Countries (Updated Report)”, issued in 2019.  The focus is on local level policies related to beneficiaries of international protection. The “local” level is understood, most importantly, as municipal administration (LAU), however, reflections about the regional levels (NUTS2 and NUTS3) are also added where relevant.

The analysis is available online in English.

The Bulgarian Council on Refugees and Migrants launched a Compass for Refugees, presenting in one place the information resources for the integration of refugees, as well as providing an opportunity for online consultation. Provision and access to information is essential component in the process of integration of refugees, both on the part of stakeholders in the direction of creating a supportive environment, as well as for the refugees themselves in the direction of making informed decisions. The Compass for Refugees is developed and maintained within the implementation of the project NIEM – National Integration Evaluation Mechanism.

The Bulgarian Council on Refugees and Migrants has launched the platform Digital Student Lab, which will present materials developed or translated by students in Arabic Studies at Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski” during the internship held at the UNHCR Representation in Bulgaria. Some of the represented materials include translations of original articles and UNHCR reports, multimedia and other content. The materials can be useful both to the academic community and students, as well as to the specialists working on the topic.

The Digital Student Lab platform is another step in the efforts of UNHCR and partner organizations to support universities and contribute to the development of a more systematic knowledge of refugee and humanitarian issues in Bulgaria.

The platform is part of the Academic Online Portal “Forced Migration and Refugees”, which is the Bulgarian response to the goal set in the 2018 Global Refugee Compact to build a “global academic network for refugees, other IDPs and stateless persons [… ] to support research, training and scholarships that lead to concrete results […] “

We present to your attention the Newsletter “Integration of Refugees in Bulgaria: Opportunities for Development” for the period October – December 2020.

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In the publication you will find information on the following topics:

Statistics on granted international protection in Bulgaria for the period January-December 2020

Development of European integration policies

▪European Commission presents new EU action plan for integration and inclusion (2021-2027)

Cooperation between NGOs and local authorities for the integration of refugees

▪Information session with representatives of municipalities and local authorities “Partnership for Integration of Refugees in Bulgaria”

▪ “Together for integration” – the beginning of a joint project of the Bulgarian Red Cross, Nadia Center Foundation, Vitosha Region and Oborishte Region of Sofia Municipality

▪The topic for the integration of refugees during the General Assembly of the Association of Bulgarian Cities and Regions

Education of refugee children

▪Education of refugee children during a pandemic — good practices, lessons learned and next steps

Refugees in the context of the pandemic – from an emergency response to sustainable protection and integration

▪ UNHCR Global Consultations with NGOs in 2020 on Pandemic Response

▪Bulgarian Response: National Forum “Protection and Integration of Refugees in the Context of COVID-19”

Development of the capacity of the civil society for integration of refugees in Bulgaria

▪ Joint seminar with the Association of Teachers of Bulgarian as a Foreign Language: “Bulgarian as a Foreign Language in a Pandemic. Communication and integration of refugees and migrants Opportunities for financing integration projects ▪Call for projects “Promoting the participation of migrants in integration policies” under the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund of the European Commission The private sector and the integration of refugees – more than economic integration

▪ UNHCR – UN Refugee Agency and KATRO Bulgaria with a joint online session “Support to Refugees in Bulgaria: Opportunities for Cooperation with the Private Sector”

▪ CITUB and Sofia Development Association with a joint project for integration of refugees in the labor market and the role of municipalities

▪Humans in the Loop – a social enterprise providing training and employment to refugees with an award from the Ministry of Labor and Social Policy

A look at the culture of the countries from which the refugees come

▪Sofia MENAR Film Festival will once again present the culture and traditions of the Islamic world

The virtual academic conference, “70 years protecting people forced to flee”, will take place on 18, 19, 21 and 27 January as a contribution towards the research and teaching outlined in the Global Compact on Refugees (GCR). This conference is co-hosted by the Global Academic Interdisciplinary Network (GAIN), a mechanism called for in the GCR to facilitate research, teaching and scholarship opportunities which result in specific deliverables in support of its four objectives. GAIN’s secretariat is currently led by the University of Essex and UNHCR, and partnered with 11 academic institutions with expertise on forced displacement to co-host expert panels in each of the regions of the world where UNHCR operates. The Conference will demonstrate unique contributions from academia to burden and responsibility sharing, protection and solutions for refugees, as well as how academic research can inform policy making, programme implementation and evidence-based decision-making.

These sessions will be held on 11^th February by the University of Essex and ASILE Network.

More information >>>

Visit the BCRM Academic Portal >>>

We present to your attention a Collection “Protection and integration of refugees in the context of COVID-19”. The publication is a collection of articles on the protection and integration of refugees in the dynamic situation of COVID-19. The authors in the Collection include leading experts in the fields of protection and integration of refugees and representatives of academia.

The publication “Protection and integration of refugees in the context of COVID-19” presents the response at the international level by sharing the UNHCR Key Messages to the European Union for action on COVID-19, the guidelines of the European Commission on the application of EU rules in the field of asylum and return procedures and on resettlement.

The publication addresses the issue of access to the territory for asylum seekers in the context of COVID-19. Besides, it covers access to health care and the organization of health services for asylum seekers and refugees in Bulgaria. The publication also addresses issues related to the perceptions of refugees in Bulgarian society, and trends in public opinion in the context of COVID-19.

The publication presents the specifics of university education in the field of pedagogical and social work with refugees.

The collection includes articles on Syria and Afghanistan, as the leading countries of origin of a significant part of asylum seekers and refugees in Bulgaria.

The collection of articles “Protection and integration of refugees in the context of COVID-19” is developed in the framework of the implementation of the project “Advocacy for the integration of refugees in Bulgaria” funded by UNHCR and the project NIEM – National Integration Evaluation Mechanism, financed under the AMIF of the EC.

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