Platform form meetings in the green sector
Name / Title | Platform form meetings in the green sector |
Case Study Region | Övre Norrland, Sweden |
Geographical coverage | The county of Norrbotten, Övre Norrland |
Type | Project |
Main activity / focus
| Create a platform for meetings between immigrants with interest and experience in working within the green sector and local rural businesses in the county of Norrbotten. The overall objectives of the project are two folded; it is partly to make the rural areas of the region more attractive and available for immigrants and partly to improve the situation of rural areas by decreasing labour shortage and increasing the number of new actors in rural regions. |
Target beneficiaries / market
| The immigrants taking part in the project have to fulfill two criteria; first they are to have the right knowledge and/or interest in the green sector and secondly they have to be interested in finding a job/ starting up a business or continue to a suitable education within the sector after the trainee period is over. No language requirements are set up and there are no requirements regarding living in rural or urban areas, the participants must however be in need of support to develop network in rural area and green sector (hence immigrants from example neighboring countries with already established networks are not main target group) Rural businesses in the county of Norrbotten |
Year established | 2010 |
Current Funding source(s) | The main funding comes from the EU Rural Development Programme while the Employment Agency supports the project by funding the trainees and the County Council and the municipalities of Piteå, Luleå and Boden also supports the project financially. |
| Actors involved in implementing the project are besides the Rural Economy and Agricultural Societies the County Administrative Board, the County Council, the municipalities of Luleå, Piteå, Boden and Älvsbyn as well as the Employment office in the region. |
Website | At the website of the Northern office of the Swedish Rural Economy and Agricultural Societies (project leaders) information about the project can be found: |
Description
| This initiative combines an ambition of developing rural areas of the county and integrating immigrants. By establishing a “green platform” the project is to mediate contacts between people with different kinds of skills and firms in need of that specific skill. As stated by the project leader Camilla Häggström; “The activities of the project are good since they help show what a great resource for development in-migrants are in rural areas.” (Camilla Häggström, project leader, the Northern office of the Swedish Rural Economy and Agricultural Societies(28.10.10)) While many firms in the green sector experience problems in finding competent labour a number of immigrants are in need of channels for getting in contact with rural areas and their actors. In addition a number of the immigrants in the region have knowledge and experience from working in the green sector and integration is high on the development agendas in the county. On this basis the project was developed. The aims of the project are:
The tools for succeeding are seen to be:
Activities carried out:
No participants have finalized their trainee period so far. The plan is to take on new participants continuously in the same pace as new participants and matching firms are found. Häggström stresses the importance of starting up the project small scale first. This gives her the possibility to follow the development of the trainees and work with all of them individually. It also gives room for the project to develop in the best way based on the experiences gained along the way. Migrants benefit from:
“The project also helps show immigrants the possibilities of the regional labour market and the rural areas of the regions.”(Camilla Häggström, project leader, the Northern office of the Swedish Rural Economy and Agricultural Societies(28.10.10)) Local businesses benefit from:
As Häggström states; “The activities of the project are good since they help show what a great resource for development in-migrants are in rural areas.” (Camilla Häggström, project leader, the Northern office of the Swedish Rural Economy and Agricultural Societies(28.10.10)) |
Contact details
| Project leader
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