Evaluation of the teaching activities for migrants of the project PONTI in Puglia, Italy

Title PONTI- Pathways to autonomy for vulnerable migrants in Puglia
Location Borgo Mezzanone, Puglia
Duration 2026
Funding Associazione Fatoma Yaiw

Context 
Over the years, Puglia became a destination for permanent immigration, with around 20,000 migrant seasonal agricultural workers in the province of Foggia alone. Across the region, according to the Placido Rizzotto Observatory, there are approximately 180,000 agricultural workers that may experience exploitation and illegal recruitment practices.

Borgo Mezzanone, a small hamlet in the Province of Foggia, is home to one of the largest informal settlements in Europe. The former runway of the NATO base is informally occupied by people in a situation of severe marginalisation; their numbers vary but can reach peaks of 4,000 migrant residents during the agricultural production season (ACLI, 2023).

In this complex situation, access to basic rights, such as healthcare, or the opportunity to attend Italian classes and courses, is virtually non-existent. At the same time, the local context is affected by overlapping issues of institutional neglect, difficulties in accessing public integration support services, and a reduction in the number of SAI (Reception and Integration System) reception facilities and related services.

Against this backdrop of multiple challenges, the project “PONTI – Pathways to autonomy for vulnerable migrants in Puglia” – funded by the Fondo Beneficienza Intesa Sanpaolo – aims to facilitate their integration through personalised programmes focusing on language skills development, employment empowerment and access to healthcare.

Under this framework, the Fatoma Yiaw Association, with its activities implemented in Scuola Fatoma, works to support migrants living in the informal camps in Borgo Mezzanone in acquiring basic language skills and obtaining a driving licence through personalised pathways. Other activities dedicated to health education and raising awareness of the right to healthcare are entrusted to INTERSOS and the MAM Beyond Borders association.

General Objective 
The Local Development Unit was involved by the Fatoma Yiaw Association in the project PONTI to carry out the final evaluation of the project activities relating to Italian language teaching, employment empowerment and health education for people with a migrant background living in the area. The evaluation aims to analyse the results, impacts and processes of change generated by the initiative.

Our contribution 
To assess the changes generated by the activities of the Fatoma School within the PONTI project, the Local Development Unit has adopted a mixed, participatory and learning-oriented approach.

The methodology chosen is EHD – Evaluating Human Development, based on the Capability Approach, which allows for the analysis of multidimensional changes in well-being by valuing the direct perspectives of participants and reconstructing the evolution of the dimensions of interest before and after the intervention, including through a perceived counterfactual.

After analysing the project documents and monitoring data, the research team will conduct semi-structured interviews with project representatives, practitioners and local stakeholders. It will also conduct interviews and focus group discussions with beneficiaries, aimed at gathering their views on the support received from the project, including through stories of change.