European Pact for Integration (EPI) Open Day Event
On October 7th, 2020, at Casino – Urban Cultural Center, in the Central Park of Cluj, the Open Days event of the EPI – European Pact for Integration project took place, in the presence of the representative of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Romania, Nasreen Rubaian, who visited Cluj-Napoca for a series of related events.
The event was a starting point for future activities on the calendar of this project, namely the organization of thematic meetings to develop a strategy for the inclusion of third-country nationals, as well as to promote the mission of cities to meet the needs of this category of inhabitants and to identify local solutions. The event also brought together representatives of the migrant communities in the city, the diplomatic environment and business in Cluj-Napoca.
EPI brings together a consortium of thirteen partners, including the cities of Cartagena (Spain), Cluj-Napoca (Romania), Dietzenbach (Germany), Linkoping (Sweden), Lublin (Poland), Ravenna (Italy) and Riga (Latvia). PATRIR, the coordinator of the consortium and the technical partner, supported the accession of the Cluj municipality to this project. Within the EPI consortium, the city will strengthen its efforts to achieve a strategic process to harmonize local public policies with the European and international agenda on this issue, which will also be synergistic with the intercultural nature of the city.
The project aims also to stimulate civil dialogue and initiate concrete partnerships in the participating cities, bringing together representatives of local authorities, social institutions, experienced civil society organizations and NGOs, while building a transnational network of partners committed to facilitating the integration of third-country nationals.
“Inclusion and integration are the basis of our institution’s role in Romania. Migration is a global phenomenon, and being open to the challenges that global mobility dynamics bring to cities around the world is a strategic and important approach for the community” said Nasreen Rubaian, representative of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Romania.
“How can we make sure that cities can be more inclusive and open to people from all over the world who choose to live here and make Cluj their home? In the project, we aim to better understand who these people are and what their needs are. These efforts will then be integrated into the development processes of the communities, whether we are talking about education, sustainable development or gender equality“, specified Kai Brand-Jacobsen, President of PATRIR.
You can see the event on the PATRIR’s page, here.
You can also find more information about the European Pact for Integration (EPI) project on their official website, www.epi-project.com.
