The PROUD project partners are delighted to announce that the conference “Integration for Unaccompanied Minors: A multidimensional approach by PROUD project”, will take place from 13^th to 14^th April 2022, in Crowne Plaza Hotel in Athens. 

This conference is organized to celebrate the completion of the 2-year course of the PROUD project, during which:

a) Supported Independent Living (SIL) was promoted and enhanced as an alternative care practice for unaccompanied minors and

b) a Mentoring scheme aiming to facilitate the integration process of the unaccompanied minors in their new communities was implemented, with notable positive results. 

The conference aims to bring together the participating bodies from the four countries in a review of the integration framework and the services provided for unaccompanied minors (housing, education, vocational training) in Greece, Germany, Spain and the Netherlands. Good practices as well as the mentoring protocol that was developed and applied in Greece, facilitating the transition of unaccompanied minors from care structures to independent living, will be also presented. 

The conference will be attended by representatives of the Greek Ministry of Migration and Asylum, the Special Secretary for the Protection of the Unaccompanied Minors, the Deputy Ombudswoman for children’s rights, UNHCR, UNICEF, Greek institutional bodies, and actors of the civil society from around Europe. All participants will highlight how supervised independent living arrangements for children can play an important role in decreasing the reliance on institutional and residential care and why de-institutionalization is crucial in order to allow unaccompanied minors to acquire adequate individual support and the right to independent living. 

For more information please visit the project’s website: www.careforminors.eu