The program Housing and Work for the Homelessimplemented by the General Secretariat of Social Solidarity of the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, is among the ten final candidate programs in the voting carried out as part of the Pan-European Policy Innovation Awards.

The awards are organized every year by Institute for Policy Innovationan organization based in Austria that promotes pioneering ideas in politics with the aim of strengthening democracy in Europe.

This year marks the sixth consecutive year of the awards, which include eight categories: Democracy, Climate Protection, Technologies for Democracy, Education, Government Improvement, Social Cohesion, Local Development and Party Innovation. More than 1,000 European citizens participate in the voting, who vote based on the innovation of each program, as well as the impact it has on the local community in which it is implemented.

The Housing and Work for the Homeless program was voted among the top ten programs in the Social Cohesion category among 337 candidate projects from 26 European countries and the General Secretary for Social Solidarity & Combating Poverty, Giorgos Stamatis will attend the final announcement of the winners that will be held in Warsaw on 11 May 2023.

The Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Affairs, Domna Michailidousaid: “Just three months after the official launch of Housing and Jobs, a program we have established as a permanent public policy, we are really proud of its nomination in the Pan-European Policy Innovation Awards.

This is a program that is not yet another transitional solution, but an essential one, as it effectively combats homelessness. Because for us the homeless are not invisible! We see them, we listen to them, we support them and above all we improve the quality of their lives, helping them to integrate into society and the labor market. For four years now, we have been aiming to create an inclusive and inclusive society. A society, in which we will all think first of “we” and not of “me”. We continue. We don’t leave anyone behind.”

The General Secretary of Social Solidarity & Combating Poverty, George Stamatisnoted: “The Housing and Work Program for the Homeless is an effective public policy aimed at the gradual and substantial reintegration of the homeless into work and social life.

The participation of the program in the Political Innovation Awards and its choice by European citizens among the most prevalent, is an important recognition of the effort made by the government and the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs to create inclusive and effective policies that strengthen social cohesion and promote human rights”.