IOM prepares Eritrean refugees for resettlement to Norway
Last updated: 15/08/2011 //
Norway has accepted to resettle approximately 200 Eritreans from Sudan; mainly from the camps in the Kassala area. The refugees have now undergone a week long preparation programme in Khartoum aiming to ease their adoption to life in Norway. The Ambassador and visa officer Nuha Mohamed met the refugees last Thursday.
IOM is running a professional programme to help refugees to prepare better for their resettlement. This week in Khartoum 4 people from Norway ran headed by IOM ran courses for the refugees. IOM used Eritreans who have already settled successfully in Norway to train the refugees about how the Norwegian society works, what is expected of them as inhabitants in Norway and what will be their immediate fate after arrival including language courses and so forth.
Ambassador Kjemprud told the refugees that the Eritrean people has a special place in the hearth of Norwegians, that Eritreans normally settles quite easily in Norway and pick up the language quickly. He urged them to work hard and make use of the opportunity given to them. The refugees received diplomas for their participation and gave examples of the language skills they had already acquired. A representative of the refugees thanked Sudan for hosting them, UNHCR and IOM for assisting them and the Norwegian Government for accepting them for resettlement.