1. Diaspora in Action Conference 26-27 Sept, 2016
Dr Melika Yassin Sheikh-Eldin
Manager, International and Community Development
Social Participation Unit
AMES Australia

2. AMES Australia- Full participation for all in a cohesive and diverse society
For the past 60 years AMES Australia has worked to support refugees and newly arrived migrants to settle successfully by:
working with local, state and federal governments, business and communities to provide individual pathways for our clients to achieve full participation
gathering evidence and sharing our experience in the development of innovative language learning, settlement and employment programs.

3. Resettlement
Resettlement is a process of change, transition and adjustment
To better understand the settlement experiences of refugee and humanitarian entrants and the capacity of host communities to support new arrivals, AMES has developed a consultation process in order to incorporate feedback into its policies and services that build social and economic opportunities.

4. Meaningful integration through economic participation
Identifying Barriers to Employment
Pre-arrival experiences
Limited or disrupted education and work opportunities
Length of time in camps; trauma, violence, loss, grief, family separation
Post-arrival factors
Lack of fluency in language of resettlement country
Previous qualifications/experiences not recognized
Lack of familiarity with the local labor market, work culture and practices
Lack of Networks
Competing pressures from complex settlement needs
Attitudes and practices of employers
Reluctance to hire people who do not have prior local work experience
Concern that new arrivals will not ‘fit in’ & will require a high level of support
Discrimination on racial, cultural or religious grounds

5. Establishing Effective programs for employment
Refugees and Humanitarian Entrants come from different backgrounds ranging from skilled professionals, trades people and those with limited work skills relevant to the Australian labour market .
Programs that provide an integrated multi-dimensional approach rather than linear, single focused solutions
Programs which are customised for different groups of new arrivals to address specific barriers faced by each group
Programs have to be delivered in creative ways to facilitate settlement and employment for refugees
Programs that provide opportunities to experience Australian work place culture and demonstrates capabilities

6. Initiatives to enhance successful resettlement through Diaspora Engagement
Examples:
Community Guides Program
Employment and support for settling communities
Skilled Professional Migrants Program (SPMP) 
Introduction to Australian workplace culture/networks
Employment and training through social enterprises 
Catering and Cleaning businesses
Brokered employment programs
Includes relocating to rural/regional areas

7. Some examples where diaspora have supported newly arrived and those seeking to migrate
Community Guides - Bilingual/multilingual men and women with recent refugee experience trained to:
Support the settlement of new arrivals
Provide cultural and linguistic support to build bonding capital.
Bridge new arrivals to the broader Australian community
Create sustainable employment outcomes for individuals in target groups
Capitalise on positive externalities

8. Community Guides 8

9. Skilled Professional Migrant Program
– SPMP facilitates:
employment opportunities into relevant professional fields for skilled professionals and para-professionals, with good English and recognised overseas qualifications.
It provides practical work experience, an understanding of the Australian workplace culture and builds confidence.

10. Skilled Professional Migrants Program
Work experience and mentoring in Australian workplaces

11. Sorghum Sisters social enterprise
It provides highly contextualised hands-on training opportunities through a catering social enterprise. AMES Australia recognised the need to provide economic inclusion opportunities through social participation.

12. Employment and training through social enterprises
Sorghum Sisters Catering

13. Luv A Duck
This is a program to settle Karen-Burmese refugees at Nhill, in western Victoria -it is emerging as a model not only for refugee settlement but also for the revival of struggling rural towns. About 250 Karen refugees have been settled in Nhill, attracted by jobs being offered by local poultry producer Luv-a-Duck.

14. Brokered employment programs
Luv-A-Duck: employment in country Victoria 14

15. Setting up as business partners
1515

16. Working Beyond the Boundaries
This is a community garden project - a working model for a sustainable community garden and education facility in an established, historic, botanic garden.

17. Success is attributed to trust and trustworthiness

18. The Werribe Garden Improving skills through the Internship program

19. Community Proposal Pilot (CPP)
This is a private sponsorship program which provides opportunity for family reunion and humanitarian migration. The CPP depends on the strength of the diaspora in supporting those arriving on this program.

20. Conclusion The most important factors for successful settlement are:
Inclusiveness
empowerment
Access
Equity
Capacity building
Having a voice
and the key approach to achieve them is through meaningful Employment

21. I invite you to watch a video
The Werribee Garden
I invite you to watch a video
“Nanthu”.
Nanthu is part of the Karen diaspora and she works hard to bridge the Karen community into the mainstream Australian community. As a Community Leader with the Australian Karen Organisation she supports and provides information on resettlement to those resettled refugees and those who are still in refugee camps on the Thai- Burma border.

22. T H A N K S