EU-IOM Joint Initiative

for Migrant Protection and Reintegration

A toll-free hotline in Somalia is assisting the International Organization for Migration (IOM) to improve the quality of assistance to migrant returnees supported under the EU-IOM Joint Initiative for Migrant Protection and Reintegration in the Horn of Africa.

Since the launch of the hotline in May 2020, 76 per cent of callers have used it to get updates related to the timeliness of economic reintegration support offered under the programme. The second largest number of concerns came from returnees in need of more assistance for the micro-enterprises they were supported to set up, followed by enquiries connected to assistance with basic needs such as psychosocial counselling and medical attention.

The hotline has enabled IOM staff to make a quick follow-up, assisting in boosting the programme’s accountability to returnees and their communities of return. It is one of the three helplines run by IOM Somalia. The other two focus on vulnerable migrants and have mainly assisted Ethiopians transiting through Somalia to receive assistance throughout their journey or deal with the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, among other concerns.

“The hotline is playing an important role in providing returnees with an appropriate and free of charge channel to share their feedback and concerns,” said Carolina Prandelli, a Monitoring and Evaluation Officer at IOM Somalia who runs the hotline with her team. “Returnees can call us from Sunday to Thursday during working hours and we will be there to assist them and make their return less challenging.”

Returnees’ needs differ. A major issue for many is to be supported to get back on their own feet as soon as possible, enabling them to begin working on reversing the pervasive stigma of failure. Delays in achieving economic independence prolong the discomfort, especially as returnees are very often subjected to pressure from families, particularly where loans obtained for their now-aborted migration journeys remain unpaid.

Under the EU-IOM Joint Initiative, vulnerable and stranded migrants are supported to return to their communities of origin, but the assistance does not end there. Soon after their arrival, returnees receive individual counselling to assess each person’s vulnerability. Depending on their needs, skills and aspirations, the support offered can include medical assistance, psychosocial support, education for minors, vocational training, the set-up of income-generating activities and support with housing or other basic needs.

Furthermore, the programme supports community-based projects across Somalia. These aim to foster social cohesion between returnees and their communities of return. They are also intended to provide returnees with new skills that contribute towards addressing issues in their communities while creating financial opportunities for them. One such activity is bee-keeping. In an effort to promote it, an agro-forestry workshop was held in Middle Shabelle in partnership with a local organisation, Hano Academy.

‘’Climate change is causing the degradation of the ecosystem in many parts of Somalia which is consequently displacing thousands of people each year,’’ explained Lana Goral, a migration and climate change specialist at IOM Somalia.

Returnees together with community members learnt techniques on how to prevent deforestation. Returnees also received beehives and seedlings to start their own local businesses which also contribute to environmental conservation.

Community-based initiatives can increase support for reintegration among local actors and the EU-IOM Joint Initiative’s toll-free number is also available for them. “Community members involved in this type of reintegration projects can also use the hotline to propose new ideas or raise concerns and so we can design initiatives that will strengthen such community networks and promote sustainable reintegration,” explained Prandelli.

To date the returnee hotline has been something of a game-changer in cutting down service delivery times. Soon after its launch, bulk sms-es were sent to all returnees supported under the programme to inform them of the service.

However, returnees and community members get to know about it through word of mouth, including through partner organisations and leaflets. The number is also shared with sending missions, such as IOM Libya and during part of reintegration counselling. ‘’IOM will continue to strengthen accountability systems to ensure the returnees and community’s concerns are listened,’’ Prandelli added.

Since the launch of the EU-IOM Joint Initiative in Somalia, 1,168 people have been assisted with voluntary return to their communities of origin as of 31 December 2020. These were mainly Ethiopians intending to get to the Middle East or had been compelled by circumstances to return from there. Over the same period 673 Somali returnees were offered reintegration support under the programme.

About the EU-IOM Joint Initiative

Launched in December 2016 and funded by the European Union Emergency Trust Fund for Africa, the programme brings together 26 African countries of the Sahel and Lake Chad region, the Horn of Africa, and North Africa, the EU and IOM around the goal of ensuring that migration is safer, more informed and better governed for both migrants and their communities.