ORIENT8 project

ORIENT8 is a social mentoring programme supported by smart digital tools and tailored activities. It pairs newly-arrived third-country nationals (TCNs) with volunteer members of the local community in order to help them overcome daily difficulties at the early stage of their integration process.

Project Goal

The aim of this programme is to improve the social orientation of newcomers, promote exchanges between newcomers and the host society and improve transnational cooperation and knowledge among practitioners.

How it works

ORIENT8 comprises 4 steps which guarantee the quality of the programme and efficient coordination and co-creation between partners.

1. FRAME: A social mentoring programme frame is developed through an international co-creation approach, led by academic partner HIVA-KU Leuven and expert partner BtH (expert in training and digital platforms/AI), with the active participation of partner municipalities. Guidelines and critical success factors about different phases of social mentoring programmes are gathered based on literature and a quick scan of existing projects with focus on durability, efficiency and effectivity.
2. CONTENT: According to the frame and guidelines developed in the first step, city-specific contents are developed at the local level, again through international exchange via workshops, in order to keep learning from each other. Supporting digital tools are also developed at this stage.
3. IMPLEMENT: Implementation and testing of the mentoring programme and activities is carried out at the local level by municipalities. Learning from each other’s experiences and best practices is also ensured by quarterly reports and meetings.
4. EVALUATE & DISSEMINATE: During and after project implementation, evaulation was carried out by interviewing mentors, mentees, and programme coordinators, and by analysing data from quarterly reports.

Who benefits

ORIENT8’s primary target group is newly arrived (within the last 5 years) TCNs. Its secondary target group is the members of local communities. Practitioners are also among the beneficiaries who can make use of the mentoring programme and tools.

Funding and resources

The project used AMIF funds for implementation over 2 years. Following project completion, municipalities continue to use the Welcome Application and cover its further development and maintenence using their own budgets. In addition to paid staff, volunteers were also involved in the project as mentors for newcomers.