The Global Compact and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) launched a website on April 3 in São Paulo, aimed at helping companies hire refugees living in Brazil. The page includes information for employers on how to hire them. The executive secretary of the Global Compact, Caio Pereira, explains that the request for asylum is sufficient for companies to employ refugees.
“All the steps are described, along with the documents. What we see is that the main challenge is the lack of knowledge on how to hire. Human resources often have their own obstacles, but we know that, by law, it is really easy to hire.”
He argued that companies have a responsibility to make an active effort to promote social change. “Companies should reflect the diversity of people.”
Adriana Carvalho, manager of the UN Women Empowerment Principles, said studies have shown that more diverse companies are more profitable and last longer. “There are a number of social and economic reasons for us to strive for a more inclusive society.”
Refugee women, Carvalho said, tend to be in more complex situations, as many of them come with their children.
The initiative aimed at this group – Empowering Refugee Women – has benefited 130 women from Colombia, Syria, Mozambique, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Venezuela. In its latest edition, which started in July, it includes 50 participants from Venezuela, Syria, Angola, and Congo.
UNHCR official Paulo Sérgio Almeida pointed out that the world is witnessing the highest number of refugees since World War II. “Because of a certain political opinion, because of their faith, because of their race. They leave one life behind and arrive in a new place to start over.”
In Brazil, welcoming Venezuelans has been the biggest challenge, due to the need to relocate them to other cities across the country. “In a country of continental dimensions like Brazil, they come from the farthest north, where they are concentrated without opportunities. They want to contribute, but cannot afford to go elsewhere.”
According to the National Committee for Refugees, linked to the Ministry of Justice of Brazil, Brazil recognized 10,522 refugees from 105 countries by the end of 2018. Of the total, more than 5,000 have active registration in the country, with 52 percent living in São Paulo, 17 percent in Rio de Janeiro, and eight percent in Paraná. Syrians represent 35 percent of refugees with active registration in Brazil.