The first hub of the Agency for Integration, Migrations and Asylum (AIMA), which was founded in Faro last Sunday, October 29th, will be a “showcase” of the work of this new organization.
The official inauguration of this space, which aims to bring together all the help for those arriving in Portugal as immigrants or refugees, was held this Friday, November 3rd, by Ana Catarina Mendes, Deputy Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, at AIMA de Faro, located inside the Loja do Cidadão, which is in the Municipal Market of this city.
As the minister explained, AIMA has the fusion of “what were the administrative powers of the SEF and what are the powers of the High Commission for Migrations with regard to the reception and full integration of those who choose to live, study or who were forced to leave their country”.
In the words of Luís Goes Pinheiro, president of AIMA's board of directors, the first priority established for the Agency's work is “dealing with documentation”.
«The second is the promotion of the Portuguese language, in the sense that it is absolutely fundamental for anyone who chooses or comes to Portugal to make a living, know our code, interpret our reality, get to know our culture and feel at home in Portugal. and fully", continued the president of AIMA.
Furthermore, Luís Goes Pinheiro highlighted the need for “recognition of skills”.
«It is not acceptable to have people today who are not making their contribution, either from an economic or social point of view, to our community because their qualifications and knowledge are not sufficiently recognized and, as such , they have to take care of tasks that are inferior to those to which they could be making their contribution", he said, adding that the priority of "family reunification" is necessary.
In order for all these “priorities” to be put into practice, Luís Goes Pinheiro explained that service at this agency will work in three main areas.
Thus, there will be digital service, «which will be the priority», telephone service – «we want to launch a new AIMA contact center next year that will serve as a regulator of the entire service system» – and, finally, in-person service , “which is fundamental” due to “human contact”.
«What distinguishes what we have here today from what we had in the past is bringing together, in a single space, our vision for AIMA stores. We bring together in the same space the skills not only to deal with the documentary component, which were handled by SEF, but also all the others, which allow referral to Portuguese language courses, support in accessing the job market and social support", explained the person in charge .
According to the Deputy Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, «after this complex reform», Portugal has «credits in international terms in terms of its immigration and reception policies».
«What we want to do with this new agency is to continue to be humanistic in welcoming and to accept that cultural diversity enriches us all», continued Ana Catarina Mendes.
The objective is, in the minister's words, to create «regular and safe migrations in Portugal, which combat illegal immigration, human trafficking and networks that take advantage of the most vulnerable». Now, she argued, this can only be done “with the first step of integration, which is dealing with their roles”.
Regarding the choice of Lojas do Cidadão to integrate this service, Ana Catarina Martins explains that the intention is that «all citizens have the closest public services».
In addition to the creation of AIMA, the Government plans to launch, in the first quarter of next year, a new Portuguese Language program, «because language is an indisputable barrier and that is why we have to improve access».
The Agency for Integration, Migration and Asylum began operations last Sunday, with 34 service counters across the country, and is expected to open at least 10 new branches within a year. According to the minister, the objective is that, as in Faro, these spaces can operate in Lojas do Cidadão.
Photos: Mariana Sedge | Sul Informação
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