Supporting Integration Locally

IOM Finland supports quota refugees’ integration in Finland on the local level. For example, between 2018 and 2022 IOM Finland advanced quota refugees’ integration in Finnish municipalities as part of a project called Navigator. This initiative promoted the capacity-building of municipal workers and decision-makers by providing trainings on refugee resettlement.

Activities as Part of the Navigator Project

Trainings

IOM Finland conducted trainings called A Refugee’s Journey to the Municipality. The trainings gave an overview of the resettlement of quota refugees to Finland and the beginning of their integration process, highlighting the important role of the public service professionals. The target group of the training was municipal employees, civil society representatives and volunteers.

Training materials

With the help of the published training materials, various actors can now organize trainings on A Refugee’s Journey to the Municipality independently and in this way support comprehensive integration. The training materials include:

• A Guidebook for Training Organizers
• The training presentation
• The training recording
• An infographic on a quota refugee's journey to Finland and to the home municipality. The infographic can also be utilized in other contexts, such as in planning and developing client work in municipalities, and for training in various service sectors.

All of these materials have been published in Finnish, Swedish and English. They can be used freely and free of charge for non-commercial educational purposes and to support integration. IOM Finland hopes that especially experts working at ELY Centres and for the wellbeing services counties as well as integration support specialists in municipalities will benefit from these materials and use them in their work. Download them from our Publications page.

Feedback collected and processed

A report compiling participants’ feedback on the Refugee’s Journey to the Municipality trainings has also been published. According to the feedback, the trainings deepened the participants’ understanding of the different experiences quota refugees may have gone through before being resettled in Finland.

Civic Orientation courses

Civic Orientation courses, developed by the Finnish Refugee Council, were organized by IOM Finland and the Finnish Refugee Council in cooperation with municipalities. During the 70-hour Civic Orientation course the participants familiarize themselves with the Finnish history, institutions, values and cultures. It offers newcomers necessary civic skills which prepare them for successful integration into their new home municipality and for learning a new language. IOM Finland contributed to further development of the organization of in-person and remote Civic Orientation courses. 

To ensure a high and uniform quality of the course, the Finnish Refugee Council has also developed a training course for Civic Orientation trainers. The certified trainers can be employed by municipalities and educational institutions.

Supporting Integration with One’s Own Language

IOM Finland has produced a handbook, Supporting Integration with One’s Own Language, which aims to support the work of professionals in municipal and regional basic services. It is targeted at professionals in municipalities and regions, as well as anyone interested in supporting integration. The publication introduces models for early integration which utilize the language skills of the people who are integrating. It also provides perspectives on interaction that supports integration.

The Navigator Project was funded by the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund of the European Union (AMIF).

Other Integration Support Activities

Looking for a Job Leaflet

IOM Finland has published a leaflet to support quota refugees’ efforts to find a job in Finland. The leaflet is available in Arabic, English, Finnish, French, Swedish, Swahili (Congolese) and Tigrinya, and can be downloaded from our Publications page.