Helios (completed)

Hellenic Integration Support for Beneficiaries of International Protection
(HELIOS)

In close collaboration with national authorities and experienced Partners, through the HELIOS project IOM aims at promoting the integration of beneficiaries of international protection currently residing in temporary accommodation schemes into the Greek society.

In January 2020, the Omnes Association entered into a project implementation agreement with Allileggie Solidarity Now (SN) entitled "Greek Integration Support for Beneficiaries of International Protection - HELIOS" funded under the European Union Contribution Agreement HOME / 2019 / AMIF / AG / EMAS / 0092.

More specifically, the activities that Omnes is responsible for carrying out include the following:

a) Establishment of one (1) Integration Learning Center (ILC) in the area of Kilkis and

b) Provision of integration courses to the beneficiaries of the Project.

The general actions provided by HELIOS and the ILC are:

• Integration Courses: Conduction of Integration Courses within Integration Learning Centres set-up across Greece. Each course cycle lasts for 6 months and consists of modules on Greek language learning, cultural orientation, job readiness and life skills.

• Accommodation support: Supporting beneficiaries towards independent accommodation in apartments rented on their name, including by providing contributions to rental and move-in costs and networking with apartment owners.

• Employability support: Provision of individual employability and job readiness support, including through job counseling, access to job-related certifications and networking with private employers.

• Integration monitoring: Regular assessment of the integration progress of the beneficiaries to ensure that they will be in a position to confidently navigate through Greek public service providers once they will exit from the HELIOS project and start living independently in Greece.

• Sensitization of the host community: Organization of workshops, activities and events and production of a nationwide media campaign to create exchange occasions between the hosting and the hosted communities, highlighting the value of the integration of migrants into the Greek society.

Objective:

The objective of the project is two-folds:

• Increasing beneficiaries’ prospects towards self-reliance and supporting them in becoming active members of the Greek society, and;

• Establishing an integration mechanism for beneficiaries of international protection, resulting to a rotation mechanism for the current Greek temporary accommodation system.

For further information about the HELIOS project, please visit the website of the project https://greece.iom.int/en/hellenic-integration-support-beneficiaries-international-protection-helios

You can also contact the HELIOS Integration Learning Center in Kilkis (Monday - Friday, 09:30 - 16:30) at 23410 28383 in Greek, 6987391710 in Arabic & Kurdish, and 6987697458 in Farsi. The address of the ILC is: Moskov 8, Kilkis.

 

---

OMNES is a partner of SolidarityNow in the framework of the HELIOS project, implemented by the International Organization for Migration (IOM Greece) and funded by the Ministry of Migration and Asylum