Michel's Story

Michel left Angola to apply for asylum in Ireland in 2006. During the time that his application was being considered, he lived in a direct provision centre in Dublin. After several years of waiting, however, he felt that it would be best to return home and begin to work again. He also missed his family and friends. Michel had seen posters about voluntary return in the centre where he was staying, and decided to approach IOM for more information.

When Michel met with IOM staff, he learned that he could receive assistance with organizing his travel documents and purchasing a plane ticket. This was important to Michel because he could not afford the travel costs. He also worried that he would have to rely on help from his family in Angola until he found a job, which he knew would be difficult after his long time away. IOM also told Michel that he could apply for reintegration assistance to open his own business in Angola. Michel had previous experience as a construction worker, and decided to purchase tools to enable him to carry out home renovation work. With his own equipment, he was also able to take contract jobs with private construction companies.

After six months, Michel was receiving sufficient work to cover his business and living costs. Although his business was progressing slowly, Michel was optimistic about the future. He was planning to expand his operation into a small civil construction firm that could employ 10-12 highly qualified staff.