Brussels – Since the successful conclusion of the first phase of the project, IOM Belgium, in close coordination with Actiris, the Brussels regional employment agency, and the European Union via the Structural Reform Support Programme have remained busy piloting the second phase of activities!

In this second phase, the project team has successfully conducted the mapping and benchmarking of good practices of similar coordination platforms in Belgium and across Europe. The mapping exercise was a follow-up from phase 1 where relevant stakeholders, active in the field of labour market integration of newcomers in the Brussels-Capital Region, identified essential conceptual elements for the envisioned platform and further clarified potential features that needed more in-depth deliberation.

Overall, a total of 91 existing platforms were mapped as potential good practices from which to draw inspiration and were then benchmarked accordingly. The benchmarking exercise underwent two distinct phases which consisted of an eligibility phase which first aimed to assess and filter out the least relevant platforms and a selection phase through which the remaining platforms were then ranked according to their relevance with regards to the envisioned conceptual elements of the Actiris Coordination Platform. From this pool, the project team selected two good practices to conduct virtual study visits with and to draw inspiration from. During these informative sessions, The Athens Coordination Center for Migrant & Refugee Issues (ACCMR) in Athens and the Coordination de l'Action Sociale de Schaerbeek (CASS) in the Brussels-Capital Region showcased their operational model.

These visits were important to gain insight into sustainable and successful platforms for the outcome of the project and proved a very fruitful exchange. Most recently, the project team has successfully embarked on its third phase of the project, by hosting the 2nd round of working group discussions where the vision and mission statement, the conceptual design and the governance structure are co-designed with relevant stakeholders. To read about this update, head to our LinkedIn page. The aim of the Actiris Coordination Platform Project is to improve the coordination among stakeholders active in the field of labour market integration of newcomers in the Brussels-Capital Region, through the development of an in-person and a digital platform. 

Learn more about the project.

This project is implemented in coordination with Actiris. 

This project is funded by the European Union via the Structural Reform Support Programme and implemented by IOM in cooperation with the European Commission.