Migrant sees education as key to integration

Gervais Marcel Cishahayo, a regular migrant from Burundi who has been living in Malta for the past 18 years, insisted today that education was the key for migrants who really wanted to integrate in the society they were living in and to keep abreast of the opportunities that could arise.

Mr Cishahayo, a geophysicist, said that mainstream political parties need to address more seriously the issue of legal immigration and integration.

He was speaking at a conference held today about integration of regular migrants in Malta, as part of SOLID (Solidarity lifts Social and Economic Development) a project which is financed by the EU.

Mr Cishahayo emphasised that there was an urgent need for more programmes that addressed the subject of regular migrants in Malta, such as the SOLID project.

He argued that immigration could offer both challenges and opportunities to Maltese citizens and immigrants alike.

Emigrating to another country was a traumatic experience particularly for those who left their family and loved ones behind, he said.

Amongst the main challenges for all immigrants was the language barrier, poor or lack of knowledge about the Maltese culture and traditions and also lack of employment opportunities in the area an immigrant is specialised in. That, he said, was education was the key, enabling migrants to be better able to adapt to the new situations they found themselves in.

Kirkop Mayor Mario Salerno said that regular migrants could provide new opportunities to Maltese society. Migrants, he said, viewed Malta as a transitional place, and he stressed the need for showing solidarity and helping them integrate in society.

Phyllis Vella from Malta European Mobility, the organisation which coordinated the SOLID project, explained that this project was aimed at fostering better communication between different peoples living in Malta in a way that all the country could benefit.

It recognised the fact that Malta had and would continue to have an inflow of immigrants. Whilst recognising this reality, this project came up with innovative ideas to address the existing challenges on how to integrate everyone's abilities for the benefit of our economy and society. Amongst the activities organised there was a multi-cultural lunch, a football match between Maltese and foreigners, English language courses for migrants, distribution of information and the setting up of an office to address any problems regular migrants might have.

Dr Cedric Mifsud from Fondazzjoni Temi Zammit explained in more detail what is required from regular migrants to obtain a valid working permit and a visa. He underlined the fact that both the police force and the ETC were extremely attentive to providing a valid working permit to people who really qualify for such permits. Dr Mifsud appealed to the authorities to address each case individually.