The Baltic countries have welcomed hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian refugees since February 2022 which poses a sudden change for all involved countries. This large influx of Ukrainian refugees presents resourcing challenges for employment support services. Relevant institutions acting as intermediaries between the business and public authorities lack institutional knowledge on how to connect refugees and immigrants with their local labour markets and how to establish local networks with public administrations in this field.

Providing effective employment assistance to Ukrainian refugees requires adequate resourcing and tailored policies that take into account the specific demographics and uncertain status of those displaced by the war.

This project aims to effectively assist refugees in entering the labor market by facilitating job placement through three key measures: Network Building, Capacity Building, App development. By developing this networked approach, building refugee capacity, and leveraging technology, the project will work to facilitate employment and labour market integration for refugee populations. Careful coordination between stakeholders and adaptable solutions will be key to addressing this pressing challenge.

To build the regional networks that will be formalized through Memorandums of Understanding, partners have already engaged with government and NGO representatives in each area. In Lithuania, Latvia, and Poland and Germany, partners have already researched and contacted potential network members in each country to assess opportunities for resilient, long-term cooperation.

With support from Interreg, this project will facilitate refugee integration through establishing institutional partnerships and cooperation agreements. By signing memorandums of understanding between key stakeholders, the processes developed will address the substantial shortage of skilled labor across sectors. This coordinated approach will have a dual impact - assisting refugees into employment while filling pressing workforce needs.