Minister Stanton Launches €10m Open Call for Proposals for Projects under European Funding

• €4.5m available from Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund for projects with activities for reception and integration of migrants
• €5.5m available from European Social Fund for gender equality projects – women returning to the workforce and women’s entrepreneurship

Mr David Stanton TD, Minister of State at the Department of Justice and Equality with special responsibility for Equality, Immigration and Integration, today announced funding of €10m for migrant integration and gender equality projects to be carried out over 2019-2022.

Two streams of funding are available with up to €4.5m from the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund to further migrant integration and reception activities, and a further €5.5m from co-financing from the Department of Justice and Equality and the European Social Fund for gender equality projects and specifically projects to support women returning to work and women’s entrepreneurship.

Launching the Open Call for Proposals at the Pillar Room of the Rotunda Hospital in Dublin, Minister Stanton said: “The organisations and projects that these funds will support have the chance to make a profound impact on the many people that will avail of them, offering some of the most excluded in our society the opportunity to have their circumstances improved.”

This is the second tranche of funding made available from the European Social Fund (ESF) and the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF) with the first tranche having been allocated following an open call in late 2016. Following that call, 20 projects received funding from AMIF.

The Minister added: “The vision, hard work and expertise of those involved in providing these projects has enabled many asylum seekers, refugees, third country nationals and their families to access and engage with the supports and services they need to transition to a new life allowing them to integrate into their communities.’’

A further 18 projects received funding from the Department and ESF. Referring to the National Strategy for Women and Girls 2017-2020, the Minister added: “As the ultimate aim of this strategy is the achievement of equality between women and men, it can be seen how important these grants are and will be to the overall work of the Department.”

Applications can now be made online to the EU Funds Unit of the Department of Justice and Equality for these funds. Applications must be submitted electronically using the relevant application form so as to arrive before 12:00 noon on Friday 31st May 2019 for AMIF proposals and 12:00 noon on Tuesday 28th May 2019 for ESF proposals. The online Application Form and other relevant documentation/ information, including assessment criteria, can be accessed here.

ENDS

Notes for Editors

This call is open to public, private and voluntary bodies carrying out the following projects/activities:

For the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund:

• reception/asylum initiatives – which will include projects with a focus on improvement of services for asylum seekers. In addition, the call is looking for projects that will address particular needs in the area of education and language training including assisting third country national children with school homework
• integration/legal migration – this covers a broad range of activities such as advocacy and support for access to mainstream services; housing supports for migrants leaving direct provision; increasing awareness about Irish society; provision of information services; activities involving local community groups; promoting cultural awareness; etc. Projects that will assist third country nationals and eligible asylum seekers to overcome barriers to employment will also be welcome

For the European Social Fund:

• women returning to the workforce – This stream of funding is for projects that develop and deliver one or more training models to offer self-developmental training in employment-related skills to women who are currently detached from the labour market (i.e. not in paid employment but not registered as unemployed) and who are interested in entering/re-entering employment
• women’s entrepreneurship - Projects in this stream will develop and deliver interventions aimed at addressing the gender gap in entrepreneurial activity through targeted supports for women’s entrepreneurship

Projects applying for funding must have a minimum budget of €200,000 for the project.