Migrant – Councillor Internship Scheme

The Immigrant Council of Ireland's Migrant – Councillor Internship Scheme is a mentoring programme that pairs local councillors with migrants who want to learn more about Irish politics and get more involved with their local communities. 

Project Goal

Goal:

The overall goal of the project is to increase diversity and representation amongst local elected representatives, and to increase voting within migrant communities. Specifically, the scheme aims to achieve the following:

• To promote migrants’ political participation by building their capacity to be active in politics and encouraging them to run in local elections;
• To 'platform' role models within migrant communities to encourage them to become active voters;
• To build better understanding among local councillors about issues faced by local migrant communities.

Challenge:

Ireland has a highly inclusive electoral system that facilitates migrant political participation. Every adult living in Ireland, regardless of nationality and including asylum seekers and international students, is eligible to vote and run in local elections.

Despite this inclusivity, migrants in Ireland do not make full use of their political rights. One in every eight people (12%) in Irish society has a migrant background, however only between 6% and 30% of eligible migrants are registered to vote across the country's different electoral areas. Additionally, Irish politicians do not fully represent the diversity of the population: at the local level, only 11 1.1% councillors have a migrant background. 

How it works

Within the scheme, the intern commits to approximately 7 hours of work per week for a 12 week period, with a local councillor.

It is expected that the internship will include the following activities:

• Attendance at monthly council meetings;
• Regular 1:1 discussions between the intern and the councillor;
• Attendance at local community meetings and events;
• Attendance at the relevant councillor’s advice clinic;
• Organisation of an online meeting between the councillor and the local migrant community;
• Canvassing;
• Voter registration.

The Immigrant Council coordinates the recruitment of councillors and the matching of migrant interns with their hosting councillor. The organisation also provides ongoing support to all participants throughout the course of the internship.

Who benefits

The primary beneficiaries of the project are the migrant interns, and the secondary target group is the local migrant community. Additionally, local councillors will benefit from the creation or strengthening of connections with local migrant communities.  

Funding and resources

The funding for this project was provided by the Asylum Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF) through its multi-annual funding scheme. To ensure equal access to the programme for all migrants, it was crucial to provide coverage of basic expenses for the interns, such as travel, lunch, and childcare fees for single parents. The total budget for three years of implementation was € 24 000. Half of this was spent on project costs and the other half on salaries for the Project Coordinator and Communications Officer.