CFSI PACCI - Refugee Women & Youth Empow Project Title: Empowering Refugee Women and Youth Towards Self-reliance and Socio-economic Integration in the Philippines

This project is unique in that it is primarily led by the refugees forthe refugees. The Philippine Government is a State signatory to theUN Refugee Convention, and at present there are around twothousand documented asylum-seekers and refugees in the country.There are alsomany internationally displaced persons with regularvisas active or expired. There is lack of awareness about refugeesin the countryand how they live. As foreigners they have to rely ontheir own or from remittance from relatives overseas in order tosurvive. Many would go to the Community and Family ServicesInternational (CFSI - an NGO partner of UNHCR), for guidance andemergency support, but due to fund constraint, only the mostvulnerable could be given priority. There is no resettlement programin the Philippines and returning to their home countries is often riskyand difficult. Marriage with locals is common, buttheir families alsodo not understand much about refugees. Since refugees areoutside of their countries for fear of persecution and threat to life,they could not rely on consular assistance even to renew theirpassports. There are around 80 youth refugees aged 14-24 yearsold and more than a hundred active women in CFSI’s registry. Ofthe women, 84 are between 18-49 years old, and half of them aresingle. Most of them are living in Metro Manila and nearbyprovinces. Based on consultations with the refugee youthgroup,their main concern is how to have a better future in the Philippines.For the women, they want to be able to support themselves or that their husbands get a stable income. Many youthswish to havemeaningful connections with fellow refugees, but thewomen areselective of their friends. Refugees are at a greater disadvantage inthe Philippines due to their condition as displaced foreign nationals.While being “protected” by the Philippine Government, they are lefton their own. The lack of public understanding and awarenessabout refugees and how they should be treated often results inexclusion and even extortion. They are always set aside by HR andeven if they already qualify, their refugee visa is not recognized. Toomuch rejection affects their self-confidence. This project targets thevulnerable youth and women of employable age. The generalobjective is to promote self-reliance and local integration byimproving their capacities, self-confidence, and social connectionsto increase their chances of getting employed and have a stableincome. Specifically, the project intends to accomplish the following:1. To improve refugee self-image and build mutual support systemand capital for self-reliance; 2. To develop the capacity of refugeeleaders and project team toimplement and manage the project withminimal support. 3. To develop life skills and employability ofwomen and youth refugees leveraging on their multi-lingual capacityand diverse background; 4) To document and share theempowerment experience of youth refugees and help improvepublic awareness about refugees and their situation. 5) To link withlocal groups and network and increase company appreciation ofunique contributions of refugees.TG: PwD