‘‘Everyone with the right motivation deserves the right opportunity’’
In 'Spotlight' we talk to inspiring entrepreneurs. This time: Motopp. Motopp gives motivated and highly educated asylum seekers the opportunity to retrain them to IT specialists. They do this in collaboration with municipalities and renowned companies. Motopp doesn't judge people by where they come from, but by where they want to go. ‘‘Because everyone with the right motivation deserves the right opportunity.’’
Motopp is committed to creating opportunities for status holders (refugees with a temporary asylum residence permit) and thereby tackling one of the most urgent social issues in the Netherlands. The amount of status holders is growing every year. Despite many of them having had a high education in their country of origin, they struggle to get good jobs at their level. At the same time, the IT-sector in the Netherlands has the largest shortage of qualified workers. Motopp builds a bridge between these two developments. Former refugees who follow the Motopp training become qualified software developers. While highly skilled and motivated candidates are given the opportunity to retrain themselves, a new source of promising staff is being created on the employer side.
The idea for this all sprouted when Merijn Biesterveld (23) was working as a waiter in a restaurant and looking for a purpose. ‘A regular guest struck up a conversation with me. About my goals, ambitions, what I wanted to do,’ Merijn says. What he wanted to do, was to express his fascination for cultural differences and help people progress in their life. After leaving school and traveling a lot, the urge to make a positive impact grew. The regular guest of the restaurant introduced him to Jan Princen, owner of software corporation Marviq. Jan was noticing the significant shortage of staff in the IT sector. They joined forces and started approaching the asylum centers in the Netherlands. ‘I was astonished to find out that people who obtained a master's degree before fleeing to the Netherlands couldn’t find a job here, whilst there is such a shortage in some labor markets.’ They started training a small group to become a software developer. ‘When they finished the training and got a job at big companies, we realized that this was working.’
Starting a new life in a different country is hard. Having a good job helps with your self-esteem and gives the motivation to start your new life. Statistics from CBS show that 43 percent of the status holders who received a residence permit in 2014 did not yet have a job by mid-2020. Those who do have a job mainly work part-time and often in the hospitality industry. Research by the Regioplan bureau shows that almost half of the working status holders are overqualified for their job.
“This job is a new beginning, it’s going to change my way of life.”
‘It meant a lot to me. This job is a new beginning, it's going to change my way of life,’ says Catherine about completing the Mendix trajectory and landing a job. Catherine came from Uganda to the Netherlands. She completed an IT-related study in her home country, still she couldn't find a job anywhere in the Netherlands. Employers in the Netherlands all asked for a lot of experience that she did not yet have. In addition, it was a requirement to have a good command of the Dutch language. ‘The Motopp course gave me the experience I needed. Now I am not only a developer, but an experienced developer. The training and exams prepared me for this and eventually got me the job I wanted.’
During the course, Motoppers are prepared for the Dutch labor market, which in addition to gaining the right experience also includes learning the language. For Mustafa, who came from Turkey to the Netherlands 2,5 years ago, the language was the biggest obstacle in finding the right job. “From day one I have tried to find a job because I want to add something to this country and continue my life here,” Mustafa says. A job regulates your life. It is very important for a human being.’ After following the Motopp course and improving his Dutch, he landed a job at Zilveren Kruis.
So far, 82 status holders have completed the full training course. 76 of those now have a paid job like Mustafa and Catherine. Now it is time for Motopp to increase the numbers. ‘We aim to be active in more than 10 countries within four years and to offer 1000 beneficiaries a year a future perspective,’ says Merijn. Now that their program has proven successful, they are expanding the scope of their activities, and helping companies successfully integrate diverse employees. ‘Businesses that have a more diverse and inclusive team perform much better. They are more attractive for people to work for, have better knowledge of the market and can deploy varied ways of looking at problems, resulting in more innovation.’ To help the individual, society and organisations, Motopp is set on increasing diversity. At Motopp, they believe that people with the right motivation should be given the right chances. ’Creating equal opportunities for everyone. That is Motopp's mission.’
Want to know more? Visit motopp.nl | Photos by Luuk de Jong
