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Description
Immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers in Romania must face language, cultural, economic barriers, the lack of knowledge regarding social and health systems, social and system discrimination. Furthermore, they must face the discrepancy between the law and its implementation which can limit their access to some rights. This is when a group becomes underserved and socially excluded. In Brasov these types of problems have been identified by the immigrants and they have reported them to the Migrant Integration Center Brasov, managed by our NGO. The project aims to improve and increase the quality of our information and counselling services, the modernization of the Information Point for migrants that we established at the immigration office in Brasov in 2014, increasing the capacity of migrants by learning the Romanian language, developing self-help and socio-cultural initiatives, advocacy for local and public authorities and the private sector for the socio-economic inclusion of migrants and activities for organizational improvement. The NGO working in the field in Romania must face a continuous sub-funded environment even if the number of immigrants is significantly increasing every year. Migrant Integration Center Brasov has been active for the past 10 years and it also faces the lack of constant funding/sub-funding that affects and limits the assistance or migrants. The increasing number of migrants and the complexity of their problems require not only the improvement of the present services that we provide, but also the introduction of new and problem oriented services. Migrant Integration Center Brasov has been created due to lack of these services in Brasov, and our partner, CNRR, has as mission to defend human rights in gene arl and the rights of migrants, refugees and asylum seekers through all the existent legal means.
Summary of project results
The project was designed to address the significant challenges faced by immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers in Romania, particularly those in Brașov County. These groups encounter numerous barriers in their integration process, including language, cultural, economic, and systemic challenges. The lack of access to information on vital services, such as employment, healthcare, education, and family reunification, along with limited knowledge of their rights, contributes to their exclusion from society.
The project focused on providing vital services and information to immigrants to help them navigate their integration process. This included establishing a point of information for foreigners at the association’s headquarters, modernizing an information point at the Brasov Immigration Service, and offering Romanian language courses across different proficiency levels, with 286 participants. Additionally, the project organized socio-cultural events, and advocacy activities with public institutions, and facilitated interactions with local employers to raise awareness about immigrants'' rights. The project’s activities were essential in improving access to information and services, thus empowering immigrants and integrating them into their new community.
The project successfully reached 1,564 beneficiaries, far surpassing the initial target of 600, primarily due to the ongoing refugee crisis caused by the conflict in Ukraine. Key results included the organization of 62 socio-cultural initiatives, 15 Romanian language modules, and multiple advocacy efforts resulting in legal changes and petitions aimed at improving immigrant rights.