Topic 1 Presentation of best practice in Lithuania and discussion, main take aways, key elements to adopt, similar case studies in Lithuania

The initiative first started in 2015 with the first increase of refugees in Lithuania, mostly from Syria and other Arabic countries. The idea came to the volunteer of Caritas. In 2022 due to sudden influx of refugees from Ukraine, volunteer again offered to organise the group consultations to the refugees. They organise two separate events in two languages – English and Russian.

The duration of one group consultation is usually around one hour, however it depends on the group size and involvement in the discussions. It can be extended in order to discuss all the questions that arise. The idea is that one group consultation would be enough to reveal migrants’ potential, to provide information how to start their career or get employed in Lithuania and motivate and enable them to take an action.

There are no exact number of participants determined. However, it is recommended that the group not exceed 10 participants. This activity takes place in the day centre for migrants around once in a week.  Currently this initiative is implemented in local level.

Source of the photo: https://www.pexels.com/photo/women-at-the-meeting-3810753/

During the consultation, a coaching methodology is used – targeted questions are used to find out a person’s strongest qualities, career opportunities and to uncover their inner potential. During the meeting career consultant helps to make a career plan.

As the centre works in the field migrants and foreigners’ integration, there were easy to reach the target group. There is advertisement posted on Facebook page in the same language as the foreseen event which also includes registration form.

In the beginning the motivation of some of the migrant women were low due to their age or family commitments. For them discussion on their strengths and weaknesses, inner potentials were particularly important which helped to reveal their inner potential and create a clear picture of their career opportunities.

Source of the photo: https://www.pexels.com/photo/mental-female-specialist-speaking-to-group-of-clients-7176302/

Some tips for anyone who would like to follow the example:

• First of all, it is very important that career consultations would be carried out by experienced and professional career consultants.
• The environment and space of the group consultations is important. There should be convenient location, preferably in the centre. The interior design is very important to create a comfortable and stress-free environment for migrants in order to engage them in the activity.
• In general career consultations provided by the professional career consultants should be included in all municipalities in the integration strategies. Even though migrants can receive consultations in public institutions like Employment Service, they are not that efficient as provided by experts from outside.
• To make this initiative long-term, firstly there should be funding from the government. To include career consultations provided by the professionals in the refugees and migrants integration programmes.

Source: https://pixabay.com/photos/women-group-building-teamwork-7297355/