LOCAL ANSWERS TO WELCOMING REFUGEES AND PREPARING FOR THE LONGER TERM

ANTONELLA NOYASenior Policy AnalystCENTER FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP, SMEs, LOCAL DEVELOPMENT LEED DIVISION19 April 2016, Venice

Flows of refugees

Flows of refugees.2

We are refugees!

• The 1951 Refugee Convention and its 1967 Protocol: the cornerstone of modern refugee protection

• Refugee :is someone who "owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality, and is unable to, or owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country.”

Refugees in the international law

• The right not to be expelled, except under certain, strictly defined conditions (Article 32);

• The right not to be punished for illegal entry into the territory of a contracting State (Article31);

• The right to work (Articles 17 to 19); • The right to housing (Article 21); • The right to education (Article 22); • The right to public relief and assistance (Article 23); • The right to freedom of religion (Article 4); • The right to access the courts (Article 16); • The right to freedom of movement within the territory (Article 26); • The right to be issued identity and travel documents (Articles 27 and 28)

Rights of refugees (1951 Refugees convention)

• Analyse the role of the various actors in refugee reception and integration and especially the role of social enterprises and civil society organisations

• Discuss how local authorities, public institutions, social enterprises and civil society organisations, private business, and citizens can work together to provide impactful, tailored, and effective responses at the local level.

Focus of the workshop

What are the underlying factors of programmes and initiatives that ensure the successful reception and integration of refugees?

How can coordination and interaction among local actors be facilitated, specifically between local authorities and civil society organisations such as social enterprises?

• How can we maximise the impact of the contributions of a wide variety of local actors while reducing inefficiencies?

Questions for the debate

/This year Fortune’s “World’s greatest leaders” lists comprises an original, “new entry”: Domenico Lucano, mayor of the small town of Riace on the Calabrian coast.http://fortune.com/worlds-greatest-leaders/domenico-lucano-40

• The village of 1800 inhabitants greeted a few years ago some 200 refugees and some 130 more are now settling with the mayor creating a special scheme for them and helping saving the village from a mass exodus.

• Apartments are given to them and training and jobs opportunities

When refugees are resources for localities! http://citiscope.org/story/2015/italy-struggling-town-looks-refugees-revival

LEED Call for Initiatives : http://www.oecd.org/fr/cfe/leed/call-local-refugees.htm

LEED Platform on local responses to the refugee crisis : https://refugeelocalwelcome.wordpress.com/