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The 1st In2C meeting, co-ordinated by the TCG, completed

The 1st In2C meeting, co-ordinated by the TCG, completed

In2C kick-off meeting was held in Larissa, Greece, on the 5th and 6th of March, 2019. In this first Consortium meeting all partners were introduced, and an overview of the project and general guidelines for management and coordination were presented.

Welcoming the meeting, the President of the TCG - Central and Western Thessaly, Nikos Papageorgiou, stated the following:

"As you know, immigration and security continue to be the two main concerns of European citizens today. The EU has in recent years developed an increasingly operational approach to address these challenges. Some of you here today have already contributed to this, helping the EU to implement its policy effectively.

The programs you are participating in demonstrate the added value of supporting the European Union in providing assistance to Member States: better managing migration flows and increasing security for European citizens. Immigration is a major challenge for all of us. A successful immigration policy is both a humanitarian and a socio-economic imperative. That is why the EU has put in place an integrated immigration policy to support actions inside and outside Europe. The EU's aim is to create legal pathways for those in need of protection as well as for economic migrants. Those who have the right to remain should also be able to integrate with all possible support. This objective goes hand in hand with the need to address the root causes of illegal immigration, to limit the activity of traffickers, and to better protect our borders.

In 2018, 347 organizations benefited from the support of the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund. Although we are not in the same situation as 2015, our work is not over. What we need to recognize is that immigration is a new reality. Therefore, we need a sustainable and long-term immigration policy that will answer the question: how do we help refugees and immigrants integrate and how do we build cohesive societies from the bottom up. We can only do this in partnership with national, local authorities and civic organizations through programs such as In2C.

We look forward to joining forces with you towards the successful outcome of the program. "

During the first day, each work package (WP) was presented by WP Leaders. TCG-CWT discussed WP1- Management and coordination of the action, DOCUMENTA presented WP2-Awareness raising activities and identification of key stakeholders’ participants, FOLKUNIVERITETET focused on WP3-Identification of good practices, labor market needs and barriers, TCG-CWT talked about WP4-In2C Training Package for TCNs, DIMITRA showcased WP5-In2C E-platform, E-Tools and WP6-In2C Skills Online Assessment Tool (SOnAT), and FLC discussed about WP7-Mobilizing employers to actively promote TCNs integration in their workforce. Next steps, priorities and objectives were discussed and agreed among partners.

During the second day, a workshop was held, where partners shared knowledge and good practices on barriers in training of TCN’s and integration into the labor market. Next meeting was determined to be held in Madrid, Spain on 18-19 July 2019