Development of Social and Entrepreneurial Activity of Immigrant Women in Lithuania
The large influx of immigrants into Lithuania is creating difficulties finding employment. According to the Employment Center, in Vilnius alone, as of April 2023, more than 5,000 unemployed immigrants from third countries were registered, approximately 70% of whom were women. Most female immigrants have humanities or social science educations, which are difficult to adapt to the specifics of the Lithuanian labor market. In the current situation, many women choose to retrain or become self-employed.
Many immigrant women find it difficult to legalize their activities. The main challenges include a lack of knowledge of Lithuania’s tax system, social guarantees, accounting, legal system, and the specifics of the local market. There are also a number of cultural differences, such as language, work culture, and business communication culture. Another important factor is that immigrants often come from countries where democratic processes are distorted or insufficient. These immigrant women lack knowledge about how democratic government systems work, how to represent their position at the municipal and national levels, and how to achieve important changes for their civic group.
Furthermore, despite the large influx of immigrants, Lithuania lacks various government measures to promote entrepreneurship and self-employment among immigrant women. The project aims to encourage active immigrant women not only to start or legalize their businesses or become self-employed, but also to learn leadership and civic engagement, identifying systemic problems and representing the interests of the self-employed immigrant women community at the local and national levels.
The project included a series of lectures on 10 topics related to integration. Over 200 immigrant women participated.
Following the lectures, 20 active immigrant women were selected, who worked individually and in small groups with a mentor, coach, and bodywork trainer. A series of workshops and meetings with specialists were also organized.
Project participants and other self-employed immigrant women also took part in a survey, which helped identify the main challenges immigrant women face when starting and running a business. Based on the results of all the events, the project participants, with the assistance of an invited expert, will develop a support program for immigrant women starting businesses in Lithuania and present it to the Vilnius City Council.
All meetings were held offline in Vilnius, Lithuania. A recording of the lectures is posted on our YouTube channel @ivpcentras and is available for viewing by anyone indefinitely.