Fourth FEAD network meeting

"Learning from each other in Germany and other EU countries" was the motto of the fourth FEAD network meeting on 16 November at the Wissenschaftszentrum Bonn. Over 160 participants were given information about the implementation of the Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived (FEAD) in other EU Member States for the first time at a national FEAD network meeting. One project manager from Denmark and one from Sweden as well as two members of staff from the Swedish managing authority came to Bonn to present their work and to engage in discussion. Also present for the first time were representatives of the eight new FEAD projects, which are to launch in the second funding round beginning January 2019.

A film about the FEAD project "Frostschutzengel Plus" from Berlin, which has been honoured for its outstanding work, was the ideal opening to the event. This exemplifies the necessity but also the success of FEAD in Europe and in Germany, said Wolfgang Husemann, head of European Funds for Employment at the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, congratulating the happy winners on behalf of State Secretary Dr. Rolf Schmachtenberg. Wolfgang Husemann thanked all the dedicated employees of the 81 FEAD projects currently active throughout Germany for their commitment, motivation and perseverance in their front-line work.

But there was not only congratulations and praise, but above all also work: Following Wolfgang Husemann's welcoming address and the presentation of relevant monitoring and evaluation results by representatives of the Institut Sozialökonomische Strukturanalysen GmbH (SÖSTRA), the participants exchanged views on how they can improve their local project work in six guided working groups. In addition to the projects from Denmark and Sweden, three German FEAD projects also presented their work in order to be able to identify good practices in the field on the basis of these examples. The main purpose of the workshops was to identify opportunities for effective local networking, cooperation and continuity, to optimise administration and to learn from the experiences in Sweden and Denmark.