In December 2020, Eurodiaconia and its project partners Diaconia Valdese, Federation de l’Entraide Protestante, and the Federation of Protestant Churches in Italy held a virtual roundtable to discuss the outcome of their joint project “Private Sponsorship for Integration: building a European model”, and present their new publication.
The event was attended by over 50 participants from across the continent, including representatives from the European parliament, the Commission, members of sponsorship groups, sponsored refugees, and various civil society organisations interested in sponsorship. Together with the presenters they discussed how such private sponsorship programmes can be designed for increased success and how sponsorship groups and welcoming communities can contribute to that success. The speakers also talked about how private/community sponsorship programmes can provide effective and quality support to persons in need of protection and the role the EU and national governments can play to incentivize the development and growth of sponsorship programs.
The partners also presented their report “Private Sponsorship for Integration: Building a European Model“, available in English, French and Italian. The publication, which focuses on humanitarian corridors, seeks to raise awareness about the benefits of community/private sponsorship programs for social cohesion and the integration of persons in need of protection and to encourage and inform the development and growth of sponsorship programs across Europe.
For more information on the Private sponsorship for integration project (PPI) and the work of its partners, please visit the PPI project’s website.
You can view the report in English, French and Italian.
You can watch the roundtable on our Vimeo channel.