The final public event of the UMN project in Sofia was the international conference organized by the partners CITUB and SDA on 27 September 2022. The conference gathered representatives of local and international organizations – public bodies, NGOs, employers – for a constructive and insightful dialogue on the challenges to integration of TCN in Sofia and in Europe. Welcome addresses were delivered by the president of CITUB, Mr Plamen Dimitrov, N. L. Narasimha RAO, UNHCR Representative in Bulgaria, and Ms. Malina Edreva, municipal councilor and chair of the Standing Committee for Culture, Education and Cultural Diversity at Sofia Municipal Council, Deputy Chair of the EU Committee of the Regions. International guests and project partners from Slovenia and Belgium also attended, sharing interesting ideas about TCN social and labor integration. Speakers emphasized the need to setting up mechanisms for assisting refugees and person with temporary protection (refugees from Ukraine), which guarantee not only the access to jobs and services, but ensure that TCNs enjoy their rights, are not discriminated against, and have the resources to build decent lives for themselves and their families.
While the conference put an end to the project activities in Sofia, the UMN consortium will gather for a final international conference in Brussels, on 13-14 December. Visit the project website and the special multilingual platform for access to services for TCNs at https://www.unionmigrantnet.eu/get-in-touch/ for other news and fresh ideas on integration.
UMN project co-funded by the European Union’s Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund.