Asylum Theme

A medium sized city in Sweden…
More than 31,000 asylum seekers came to Sweden in 2003. For most of these people, a long time waiting, maybe lasting several years, lies ahead. In December 2003, 43,400 asylum seekers across Sweden were waiting for their fate to be decided by the National Migration Board or the Alien Appeals Board. According to figures released by the Migration Board, this figure can increase to 65,000 by 2006. This equals the population of a medium sized city in Sweden.

The EQUAL Community Initiative
EQUAL, a development programme under the European Social Fund, provides support to activities aiming to develop new methods and pathways to counter discrimination in, and exclusion from, the labour market. EQUAL encompasses a number of priority themes. One of these focuses specifically on asylum seekers. The overarching goals of the EQUAL Initiative for the Asylum theme are:

- facilitate the integration of asylum seekers in society and work life;
- develop measures to facilitate a possible return to their home countries;
- develop measures for meaningful activities during the asylum seeking period.

European Refugee Fund
The European Refugee Fund (ERF) supports, among else, projects designed to develop the asylum seeker reception system, integration measures and efforts in connection with voluntary or involuntary repatriation. The hundred or so projects in Sweden currently or formerly financed with ERF funds focus on a number of areas. These include co-operation between authorities and voluntary organisations, developing methods to help the target group choose where they want to live in Sweden, increasing the efficiency of health care and rehabilitation programmes and improved introduction for especially disadvantaged groups of refugees.

New actors
EQUAL’s Asylum Theme concerns many different policy areas, all requiring integrated efforts from various actors in society. Activities in EQUAL are carried out within the frame of Development Partnerships, wherein actors from various sectors in society co-operate in finding solutions to related problems. Each Development Partnership also co-operates within a transnational partnership that includes actors and activities in other Member States. A desirable development is to see increased involvement by NGOs, both within EQUAL and the ERF.

Asylum Theme in EQUAL
There are three EQUAL Development Partnerships, and one Objective 3 project, in Sweden under the umbrella of the Asylum Theme. They all work to develop activities in various priority areas and co-operate in the Thematic Network at national level where ERF projects also play a role. The four project activities share the following common reference points.

• Reception of asylum seekers is considered as part of a coherent process comprising, in addition to asylum reception, refugee introduction, integration and reintegration/repatriation.

• The situation of asylum seekers is assessed from a health perspective. An important reference point for activities is the key role of the individual’s physical and psychological health situation for their ability to take advantage of education, training and other measures.

• Priority is given especially to disadvantaged groups. This includes educational support, social support for unaccompanied minors and adapted measures for low-educated women.

• Effective co-operation requires high competence among concerned actors. Common competence development of staff and decision-makers from all organisations and authorities is an important element in achieving this goal.

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Read more about Asylum Theme on the Swedish webbsite www.temaasyl.se