Since the onset of the Ukrainian crisis, Baltic countries have faced a consistent inflow of IDPs and refugees from Ukraine. In this context, it is fundamental to identify strategies and programs that could help both countries and refugees to valorize their competences, acquire new skills that can help them thriving, develop capabilities that they could be able to valorize after return to Ukraine. To do so, the SINTONIA partnership needs substantial funding and thus the SI seed funding mechanism will be used to prepare a proposal for external funding (eg. from various EU programmes)  and to further define the needed activities and stakeholders.

According to our current design, our ultimate project should:

• Foster the professional activation of IDPs/refugees by learning the basics of social entrepreneurship, participating in various training, events and mentor/coaching programs.
• Improve their living conditions by setting start-ups and improving qualifications.
• Mitigate war trauma by setting new (work and education-based) social ties and learning local language and culture by intensified contacts.
• Identify of talents and prospective candidates for entrepreneurs and providing them with individual coaching.
• Increase capacity of project partners and the collaborating aid organizations in delivering targeted education and aid.

The project has been originated after the 19.1.2023 webinar of SI. Since a few months National Centre for Nuclear Research (NCBJ),  the association Ukrainian Distance Learning (UDL) and the Kutaisi International University, were working on identifying funding opportunities for the integration of Ukrainian refugees in the country where they are. IGITEGO has shown particular interest in taking part in the initiative, due to its experience and commitment to the creation of project for social inclusion for migrants.