A ministerial decree (No. 48/93, 15.5.1993) has initiated a programme to support the integration of immigrants and ethnic minorities into Portuguese society. It is the task of the Ministry of Labour and Social Security to coordinate the funds for this target group during the implementation of the programme. At the same time, participation by the representatives of the groups affected and cooperation with government representatives from the relevant countries of origin are to be intensified.
The programme focuses mainly on the fields of education, job creation, vocational training and social security. More specifically, the aim is:
- (within the education system) to improve the quality of educational measures and integration within school and the community;
- (in working life and vocational training) to develop measures to improve information-provision, motivation, training and job creation;
- (in the field of social security) to take greater account of the needs of the target group and intensify participation by public and private bodies; advisory centres and other support measures are to be set up to deal quickly with particularly urgent cases.
In addition, local development initiatives are to be developed in regions in which the concentration of immigrants and ethnic minorities is particularly high. At the same time greater efforts are to be made to reach cooperation agreements in the field of work and vocational training, particularly with Portuguese-speaking African countries.
The implementation of the Programme is to be based on an intensified dialogue between the social partners and other interest groups.
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