Developing a Refugee Advisor Programme for Community Sponsorship
In January 2022, the Share Network organised a preliminary workshop ahead of the launch of our Refugee Advisor Programme for Community Sponsorship. The programme will fit under the umbrella of the Refugee sponsorship mobilisation platform activities. In the past year, Share has reached out to a number of organizations with experiences in advocacy by and for refugees. These good practices have informed our thinking behind the preliminary workshop and the proposed features of the Refugee Advisor Programme.
Mustafa Alio, R-SEAT, “Participation and refugee inclusion will never happen until stakeholders, states, policymakers, NGOs and INGOs start shifting the narrative and shifting the stereotypes on refugees as only passive victims in need of help and to start thinking of refugees as equal partners”
The workshop was attended by over 50 participants from across Europe, Canada and the United States with the majority of participants having direct experience from the field, either as sponsored refugees, refugee students, volunteer sponsors, intercultural mediators, or training and lead sponsors organisations.
The event featured presentations from the VOICES network in the UK on their sponsorship ambassador programme, as well as from R-SEAT - an international initiative working to increase the participation of refugees at the global and national level in a meaningful, sustainable, and transformative way. We also heard from New Women Connectors, a migrant and refugee-led organisation that uses a gender transformative approach to advocate for changes in EU migration policies. Most importantly however, the workshop provided a meaningful opportunity for attendees to co-design and give feedback on proposed features of the advisor programme as well as discuss what would be the most effective tools to communicate refugees’ views.
Participants were divided into breakout sessions to discuss basic requirements for the success of a refugee advisor programme. Together, they reflected on what would be most relevant to consider for refugee participation in advocacy and the specific features a refugee advisor programme should include.
Doaa AbuAmer, VOICES Network, “It is important for the staff who will be leading this ambassadors programme to be mindful about the potential barriers to equal participation”
Below are four key recommendations obtained by participants:
The objectives of the programme must be clearly explained to potential candidates before asking for their engagement. For advisors to be involved in advocacy for community sponsorship they need to have a clear understanding of the concept and what advocacy involves.
Creating spaces where refugees can speak freely about the challenges that they face is essential
When selecting advisors, refugees should not be chosen simply because they have lived experience but because of the unique expertise they bring. A diversity in advisors is important and should be thought about beyond gender and age. An intersectional approach should be used in order to support the participation of disadvantaged groups such as sexual, gender and religious minorities.
While ability to communicate in English is an important skill for such a translational initiative, efforts should be made to include refugees who don’t speak English fluently, either through interpretation or organising national activities in the host country’s language.
Advocacy priorities for refugees in community sponsorship
Participants also discussed specific priorities when it comes to advocacy for refugees in community sponsorship and complementary education pathways.
Scaling higher education pathways for refugees
Two UNICORE students from Ethiopia shared that albeit safely landing in Italy, they still think of family and friends left behind in refugee camps. They would like to engage in advocacy so that more students can come to Europe via complementary education pathways.
Legal status and documentation
Some participants argued that refugees’ residence permits should also include a travel permit (e.g. in Italy refugee students’ documents are recognised in different regions but these documents do not give them the right to travel). Moreover, a number of participants discussed the issue of skills and qualification recognition and argued that work experience and diplomas from non-EU countries should be recognised and valued to allow refugees to work in jobs that suit their skills. Other participants mentioned the idea of developing labour mobility programmes where refugee candidates could be selected based on their professional qualifications and skills.
Support offered
Some of the advocacy points discussed in the groups focused more specifically on the operation and coordination of sponsor groups. Sponsors stated that they believe refugee advisors/ambassadors could help in managing expectations of sponsors and new arrivals.
Additionally, availability and quality of housing should be a priority as well as financial support from the government to be able to afford quality accommodation. They also insisted on the importance of compulsory language learning for refugees and access to education for children.
Next Steps
The Share Refugee Advisor Programme aims to recruit a diverse group of refugees with representation from different European countries participating in sponsorship. Following the workshop and feedback received, a call for applications was launched. We hope to recruit motivated and skilled individuals with a refugee background to raise awareness about community sponsorship, bringing their lived experience and concerns to the local, national and particularly the EU level. We aim to promote refugee participation as a tool for the creation of more welcoming and inclusive societies, to advocate for more complementary pathways, and the expansion of community sponsorship.