The content of this write up is subject to criticism and I take full responsibility for the grammatical errors. I do not intend to hurt anyone but to express my view based on a student and immigrant perspective.
I am grateful for this opportunity that the Director of magma, Mr Nils Erik Forsgåd, gave me. Sir, I thank you for allowing me to take part in the pilot magma seminar. I am also grateful that the Minister made room for me during the magma seminar to address my question. Ms Åkero Fredrika, thank you for interpreting the main points in Swedish to English so that I could follow the discussion. I would as well like to thank Olav S. Melin and Ben Fernstöm for encouraging me to join the blogging community.
I am originally from Cameroon, West Central Africa. I have lived in Finland for five years. I moved to Finland because I would like to experience something completely new as far as living condition, education are concerned.
I have a multicultural background. Some years ago I lived with my late uncle for more than a couple of years. He was married to a Nigerian woman. My wife is Russian. I am Cameroonian. Soon we are having a baby. We met in Helsinki. Today we live in Helsinki. Finland, I would say, has become our second home.
While in Finland I later realized that having the proper education would open the door for me economically in that I would have a place in the labor market and so I had to give up the many odd jobs I used to do in order that I continue my education. I am a final year student in Helsinki Metropolia University of applied sciences, department of healthcare and social services. I seem to be more interested in working with immigrants and ethnic minorities.
My desire to study in Finland increased when I noticed that studying in Finland is relatively less expensive to other countries like the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, to mention a few.
I enjoy working with people, observing them and asking myself why they behave the way they do. For the few years I have lived in Finland many questions have come to my mind after a close examination of the trend of events. What has struck me most is trying to understand why most of my friends and colleagues leave Finland for other countries after their education? Why do some leave even before completing their studies? Why do most, including myself, complain about the system? Why must immigrants move from Finland to other countries, why can’t it be the other way round i.e. migrant graduates moving to Finland? I understand that by nature human beings would always complain even when there seem to be nothing to complain about. This time around it seems to me that there is something worth mentioning.
Finland trains immigrants by providing them with ´´free´´ education. After graduation most cannot find work in their field of studies. What does Finland do with these immigrants who are ripe for the labor market? Somebody has to pay for an immigrant to complete a three and half-year study program in polytechnic. It puzzles me that after spending this much on migrants most of them do unskilled labour after graduation. I can only imagine how much it costs the taxpayer or Finnish government to fund the education of immigrants. Of course I do understand that many immigrants work extremely hard and pay their tax while studying at the same time. Lets get back to my worry before I get out of topic.
When my friends leave Finland because they cannot find work in their respective field of studies, to some extent I share their concern. It can be frustrating to invest time, money and energy in studies only to come out unemployed for many years. I have made some efforts to show my willingness to contribute positively to the Finnish society. I have tried to learn the language. This means that for many months I had to forgo the jobs that helped me pay rents and take care of basic needs. In most of the courses I had to pay 90euros for each.
I am also a member in associations that promote integration such as multicultural Finland. I am a member of the Finnish Red Cross and have voluntarily made a yearly payment contribution. I search for seminars and conferences. I ask questions and try to follow what is going on in the media. I remember at one point I woke up in the morning and spent almost the whole day sending applications to various employers. Before I knew I had sent about 50 applications that same day.
I have a feeling that things are beginning to get better slowly. But then better is not good enough. I think that if immigrants were given the opportunity they would put in their best and make this society a better place to live in. I understand how threatening it is for nationals who see the constant rise in the number of immigrants in their country. If I were a Finn, I would be ´´scared´´ somehow because it could be a threat to the culture. But it also could be an opportunity to cross-examine ideas and values and exchange of talents. I picture the situation much the same as preparing a delicious sauce. For it to be tasty there ought to be a combination of ingredients. Different migrants are the ingredients and their constructive contribution to the society, when given the opportunity, would be beneficial to everyone.
It has not been easy to find an internship place that suits my study needs. I personally searched for the current one I am in and I am still searching for the 3rd and final one. As a student I dream of a day when an opportunity would be given to students to do their internships in government institutions, for instance, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs/ Interior or in my case, Finnish Immigration service. This would ease integration, which would in turn give migrants access to vital resources and independent choices.
I had the opportunity to share my view on integration with Minister Astrid Thörs. It was such a nice moment and I agree with her that employers ought to give migrants more opportunities for work. In my opinion the very fact that the director of magma allowed me to take part in the seminar, and the Minister listening to me and answering my question, is in itself a process of integration because when I looked around in the room, I was a minority among the minority.
In sum I think integration is a two way process, the willingness of the host country to accept the immigrant and the readiness of the immigrant to show the host country what he/she has got to offer.
Every human being has got potentials. Under the right circumstances and when given equal opportunity, the potentials would be seen and would serve the common good of society.
Best regards
Jay
