At the meeting that took place on Friday the 24th and was widely attended by Galicians residing in this city in Switzerland, the most innovative measure was among the hundred measures of the new strategy: the “Retorna Cualifica Emprego” program, which aims to offer an indefinite training and contract in Galicia for up to to 400 Galicians from abroad.
Thus, the General Secretariat for Migration started the round of presentation of ERG2026 in Europe by Switzerland, as it is the country on this continent that has the largest community of Galicia and the fourth in the world, with approximately 41,300 Galicians.
As explained by Antonio Rodríguez Miranda, this media measure aims to bring all these people closer to the new strategy, which includes 100 measures to encourage return and a budget of more than 450 million euros.
The Secretary-General added, “Among all of them, it is worth highlighting those related to the workplace, as having a job facilitates the success of return and the possibilities of permanently establishing ourselves in our society.” Hence, 175 million has been allocated for the development of 37 measures related to the vocational and labor skills of the beneficiaries.
“Return Qualify Emprego”
According to Miranda, the pilot program “Return Qualify Emprego” “will be the ultimate encouragement to facilitate the return to the Galician community from abroad, as it promotes one of the essential areas of return: work.”
This initiative seeks to match vacancies in the company with the employment needs of returnees. With this initiative, Xunta has planned that more than 400 Galicians trained from abroad will return to Galicia this year on an indefinite contract, as well as get advice and protection on their new journey. The Government of Galicia will invest nearly 4 million in this initiative, through which a new step will be taken to adapt the needs of the labor market to the workforce it needs.
This innovative measure will allow beneficiaries to return to their native land with a contract for a minimum of 12 months and financial assistance to fund initial expenses, both for the overseas trip to Galicia and for other institutions in the community.
Dual measures and budget
Galicia’s return strategy 2023-26 doubles in terms of actions and budget than its predecessor, which was launched in 2018 and which “marked a turning point in the return policies implemented in Spain so far,” according to Miranda. With the aim of continuing to make Galicia the best option for living for Galicians living abroad, the document focuses on four main areas: advice and follow-up, social, educational and labor areas.
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