Welcome Space for Migrant and Refugee Women

The Welcome Space for Migrant and Refugee Women is an open space for migrants and refugee women to come together and share their stories in a place of trust and listening in French and their mother tongue. It is our hope that in this space, refugee women can build a community and network of mutual support. This place also offers an opportunity to provide the refugee women with information that can be helpful to their daily lives and to their accessing of other non-governmental associations or public institutions.

Through the Welcome Space, we also provide French language lessons with an emphasis on oral practice. We also run themed workshops on health, education and public services. A children’s space is also available to enable mothers who are caring for their children to come.

Our goals:

• To bring often isolated migrant women together where they can share their experiences and become informed and part of a community in Geneva.
• To support French language acquisition and help the migrant and refugee women through the process of engaging with employment, creating a CV and looking for internships.

We offer:

• Initial-arrival support, spaces for listening, referrals to public institutions, translation support and help through the administrative processes that migrant and refugee women need to undertake.
• Motivated French language acquisition through weekly workshops.
• Meetings for exchange of experience to create an opportunity for migrant and refugee women to build a community and network.
• Presentations on a variety of subjects such as: education and schooling, health, food and healthy living.
• Excursions, cultural visits, opportunities for participating in local events and the chance to engage with the neighbourhood.
• Activities for children aged 5 to 12.
• Daycare for children aged 0 to 4 with food, snacks and fun for everyone!