Background information

In order to provide support to Ukrainian citizens who have arrived in Latvia as a result of the war as quickly as possible, the Society Integration Foundation in cooperation with the Ministry of Welfare has established a support service - social mentor service for Ukrainian citizens. The social mentoring service for Ukrainian residents is available throughout the territory of Latvia and is implemented in cooperation with 43 municipal social services. The social mentor service itself will be provided by the Family and Foster Family Support Society 'DOMUS', the foundation 'Caritas Latvija', the society 'Shelter "Safe House"', the society 'Gaišo domu Platforma', the Training Centre 'FIBRA', the foundation 'Ventspils Augsto tehnoloģiju parks' and the society 'Vidusdaugavas NVO centrs'.

Content of measure

The Social Mentoring Service is available to Ukrainian citizens for 60 days and will provide practical assistance in dealing with a variety of everyday issues. The mentor will help in real-life situations to learn the skills necessary for everyday life, as well as providing support in arranging various formalities, such as accommodation, clothing, work opportunities or getting to the place of assistance. To receive a social mentor, Ukrainians must apply to their local social services. Social workers from the social services will assess the individual case of each client, and if necessary, will assign mentor. The social mentor service itself will be provided by the Family and Foster Family Support Society "DOMUS", the foundation "Caritas Latvija", the society "Shelter "Safe House"", the society "Gaišo domu Platforma", the Training Centre "FIBRA", the foundation "Ventspils Augsto tehnoloģiju parks" and the society "Vidusdaugavas NVO centrs".

Use of measure

The program was launched at the end of April 2022. In total, by the end of 2023, social mentor support was provided to 1,957 Ukrainian civilians (1,175 women and 782 men); 34% of beneficiaries were between the ages of 0 and 18, while the oldest Ukrainian resident who received assistance was 93 years old. The implementation of the program was carried out in close cooperation with social services of municipalities throughout the country, with the active involvement of 23 municipalities, the most active of which were the municipalities of Rēzekne, Kuldīga, Saldus, Balvu and Jēkabpils. The service was provided by 93 social mentors from 7 non-governmental organizations.

Target groups

Workers	Businesses	Citizens
Does not apply to workers	Does not apply to businesses	Migrants or refugees

Actors and funding

Actors	Funding
National government Other social actors (e.g. NGOs) Local / regional government	European Funds National funds

Social partners

Social partners' role in designing the measure and form of involvement:

	Trade unions	Employers' organisations
Role	No involvement as case not in social partner domain	No involvement as case not in social partner domain
Form	Not applicable	Not applicable

Social partners' role in the implementation, monitoring and assessment phase:

• No involvement
• Main level of involvement: N/A

Involvement

No involvement.

Views and reactions

No views to report.

Sources

• 26 October 2022: Support from a social mentor to help you deal with everyday situations (www.sif.gov.lv)
• 03 June 2023: Law on Assistance to Ukrainian Civilians (valid from 3 June 2023 (likumi.lv)