Cooperative project launched for digital qualification of migrants interested in returning to their home country
The Digital Qualification of Migrants project is a cooperation of the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, the Ministry for Family, Women, Culture and Integration (MFFKI) of the State of Rhineland-Palatinate, and Mainz University of Applied Sciences. The development of the course started in early May 2022. To improve their job prospects in their home countries, migrants interested in returning have the opportunity to learn digital skills in various courses and expand them in in-depth modules.
The aim of the project is to promote the digital skills of migrants in the form of a low-threshold and target-group-oriented learning experience and thus position them better for the job market in their home countries. As a test run, a class titled Digital Skills was held to teach basic skills in the use of digital applications. The first topic-specific course in a specially designed series of modules on digital literacy will begin in October, and will be followed by modules in areas such as social media marketing and website management.
The project is being carried out by members of the Research Group for Information Systems and Media Management (WIMM) under the direction of Professor Sven Pagel. It is primarily geared towards migrants from twelve target countries (such as Pakistan, Albania, and Ghana) who are interested in returning. The courses take place at the Reception Center for Asylum Seekers (Aufnahmestelle für Asylbegehrende, AfA) in Speyer.
Digital Qualification for Migrants is a practice-oriented, prototype project, which is being academically evaluated before, during, and after its implementation. The current duration of the project is set until 06/30/2023. It is part of the program Migration für Entwicklung, or Migration for Development (PME), which GIZ has been implementing on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).