Fostering international connections: Delegation visit from Mission Locale Des Bords de Marne in Slovenia

In March we had the opportunity to organise a delegation visit from Mission Locale Des Bords de Marne from France. They are a special organisation working with unemployed young people aged from 16 to 25 years and providing them with information, guidance, social and professional follow-up. They help around 30.000 young people per year.

Mission Locale Des Bords de Marne is our long-term partner that sends students to Slovenia every year and visits us, our partner organisations and their students regularly. The purpose of the delegation visit was to visit our SiMO Experience agency and similar organisations and companies that are hosting their students on ERASMUS+ internship mobility in Slovenia.

When they arrived to Maribor, we welcomed them in a relaxed atmosphere to talk about their students, wishes and expectations. The first day of the visit was dedicated to the presentation of Slovenia, Maribor and a general presentation of our activities as for some of the participants this was the first time in Slovenia. We also gave them some tips on what to do and visit in Slovenia on their first visit.

On the next day, we visited Andragoški Zavod as both organisations share the same values and ambitions and implement similar activities. We were welcomed by Vesna Lukovnjak and Helena Matavž who held an interesting presentation which led to a debate and exchange of good practices. One of their most important projects is PUM-O+ which is aimed to help people finish their school, get a job, acquire professional certificates and other activities. They also showed us their centre for young people where they perform different activities.

Our next stop was at the Career Centre of Maribor University where we were welcomed by Matej Kosi Hederih. All of us presented their organisations and activities as our main goal is to help young people to gain experience, improve their language skills and become more attractive to future employers. We concluded that international experience is of great importance and language skills even more so, as the ability to work in an international environment is a great indicator of adaptability, self-confidence and soft skills.

After the meetings, it was time to visit their students who are on Erasmus+ internship in Maribor in the Tourism and Sports sector. First, we took the participants to Pohorje in order to show them the views over the city of Maribor, explain a bit of history and flora and fauna and also to visit Hotel Bellevue where one of the students is having his internship. The participants were impressed by the nature surrounding the city and the amazing view that Pohorje has to offer.

We visited the football Club NK Tabor and their physical conditioning centre as well as the training ground where they perform everyday activities that host more than 500 children from Maribor. Afterwards we showed them the Ice Hall Maribor, home of the ice hockey team Mariborski Lisjaki which had a training session that we were able to briefly observe.

On the last day, we took our guests to Drava Centre to enjoy the nature and amazing views and at the end to the sweetest spot in Maribor where we enjoyed the best cake that Maribor has to offer in combination with the view to Mariborsko Pohorje.

Delegation visit conclusion:

We were happy that one of our best partners visited us in Slovenia where we could meet with similar organisations and visit their students at their work. It is important for the organisations to visit the countries to where they send their students as it helps them to better understand how students integrate in their new environment and adapt to their mobility experience. We are looking forward to seeing them again next year.