Since last April, the association “Utopia 56” has opened 4 reception homes in different regions of Ile-de-France, to accommodate unaccompanied minor immigrant women.
African girls, aged 15-17, share the details of daily life under one roof with the help of three coordinators and two civil service volunteers.
In an interview with “Sky News Arabia”, Anna, who works as a coordinator in one of these homes, said: “In each house we receive a maximum of ten unaccompanied minors, who failed the age test and were not recognized by the judge as minors. A situation that deprives them of any right or assistance. They do not find themselves on the street. We provide them with legal, psychological, social and health support until they reach the age of majority.”
Thanks to legal support and administrative tracking, several girls residing at Women’s House were able to prove that they were minors, and obtained the legal rights provided by France in this case.
Anna adds: “What distinguishes us and makes our center unique is that we receive girls only. Although girls represent a small percentage of unaccompanied children compared to males who arrive in France, specifically Ile-de-France, they are more vulnerable. We know what happens along the way. With immigration, they are subjected to violence and harassment, and given their past and what they have been through, they should feel that they are in a safe place, and that is why these homes are reserved for girls and not for boys and are run by women only.”
About the services provided by “Women’s House”, she spoke to “Sky News Arabia” Bomba Maninfla, who is no more than 17 years old, and comes from Cote d’Ivoire, saying: “Here our privacy is respected. We live at home as if we are in the arms of our family that we left behind. A bedroom I share with a girl who has become a sister and a friend to me. I have a small closet, and my own space away from any harassment or fear of the unknown.”
Maninfla shares the management of daily life in the reception house with four other girls, and distributes the housework among them according to weekly schedules, in the presence of coordinators who volunteer to serve these girls.
Shared relationship
Given that these minor immigrant women do not have any financial income, Marion, a coordinator at Women’s House, says, “We accompany the girls to provide the weekly purchases they need. We prepare them according to an internal collective system to face life after they leave our centers when they reach adulthood.”
Although Utopia 56 does not receive any financial support from the state, it is trying with the help of MSF, its main partner, to provide training courses for girls according to their needs.
For Marion, enrollment in the training courses remains essential for a stable and independent situation in the future.
She explains that girls are subject to a French language test and some skills to determine their path, adding: “According to the test results, some of them go to French language learning centers, and others we send them to education centers directly, where they receive lessons in science, languages and other necessary skills and knowledge.”
On this point, Bomba says: “I came to France with a weak French language, and today, thanks to the support lessons, I am able to communicate with my surroundings better. “.
In addition to education, the coordinators dedicate weekends to outings and discovering the city, as they consider these activities necessary to improve the mood of girls, and some other activities, such as theater and painting workshops, are an opportunity to link the bonds of friendship between them and the coordinators on the one hand, and with their surroundings on the other.
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