Employment for displaced migrants is a core part of the integration process because it provides not only an income, but also a social network, as well as status, confidence, independence and health (UNHCR, 2018). Integration through employment can also contribute to the host country by boosting the working-age population and contributing to human capital, taxes and social income (OECD & EC, 2016). Also, the more displaced migrants enter the labour market, the less public funding is spent in the form of material assistance (Barslund, Bartolomeo, Ludolph, 2017). Despite the obvious benefits of integration through employment both for displaced migrants and host countries, significant barriers and gaps persist for the integration of displaced migrants across Europe. This report presents and discusses the results of a research that focused on the integration of asylum seekers and refugees into the Cyprus labour market and their skills training. It reviews the legal and policy framework that refugees and asylum seekers must navigate in their efforts to access the local labour market, the different types of integration support measures and challenges, as well as the good practices initiated in particular by the third sector. This report was conducted within the framework of the European project entitled Governance and the Local Integration of Migrants and Europe’s Refugees (GLIMER). The aim of GLIMER is to generate research that will help European cities and regions facilitate the long-term inclusion of displaced people in a way that remakes local spaces.

DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.5082813