Almere wondered how it could improve guidance for Ukrainians. The municipality decided to ask the Ukrainians in the shelter. Sounds obvious, it is not (yet). Vrij Nederland interviewed our colleagues Renée Frissen and Tamer Allaloush about the expert pool in Almere.
Support building life
People from Ukraine need not only temporary protection , but also support in building their lives in the Netherlands in the long term. But the Municipality of Almere could not find anything about this in the national regulation. "Incomprehensible!", thinks Wouter Locher, project manager at the municipality. "So it is up to all 300+ municipalities in the Netherlands to invent the wheel in this themselves. How do you help people get started? How do you make sure they have something to do and don't get bored in their rooms?"
In Almere, Ukrainians think with policy themselves
The municipality decided to ask the people themselves. OpenEmbassy helped them organize an expert pool of 20 people from Ukraine who, since the summer of 2023, have been thinking about ways to improve the shelter.
It sounds obvious: "ask people themselves what they need," but it is not (yet), especially with people from Ukraine. Many municipalities are still in crisis mode as far as the reception of Ukrainians is concerned. As a result, it is still rare for them to involve Ukrainians in shaping long-term integration policies. While their experiential knowledge can make the difference between ineffective policy and policy that is well tailored to the needs of the people it is meant for.
Article Vrij Nederland
"In Almere, Ukrainians help decide policies that revolve around them"
