Messina, scholarships for young people in recovery areas

As part of the activities of rehabilitation from the shanty town Of Messina A project was illustrated today in favor of young graduates registered in the rehabilitation areas. Upon proposal of theNational Association of Italian Schools (ANSI) and on the initiative of the mayor Federico Basileof the government’s extraordinary commissioner for the rehabilitation of the slums of the city of Messina, of the provincial school office, of A.ris.Mè and of the Messina Social City, ten scholarships will be awarded from the telematic universities of the Multiversity group (Pegaso, Mercatorum and San Raffaele).

The details of the public tender for participation were presented today during a press conference at Palazzo Zanca, in the presence of the mayor Federico Basile, the deputy mayor and councilor for sanitation and relations with A.ris.Mè Salvatore Mondello, the councilor to Social Policies Alessandra Calafiore; of the Undersecretary of State at the Presidency of the Council of Ministers Matilde Siracusano; of the sub-commissioner for the Sanitation emergency Marcello Scurria; of the presidents of the municipal sanitation agency Aris.Mé, Vincenzo La Cava, and of the president of the Messina Social City special agency, Valeria Asquini; of the general secretary of ANSI Nanni Ricevuto; and the official Giusy Ioculano of the Provincial School Office, representing the manager Stello Vadalà.

Basile’s words

“On the subject of recovery – explained Mayor Basile, in introducing the meeting with the press – notable steps have been taken, which go beyond clearance, as, in addition to the building element, which is already important in itself, the initiative presented today adds the equally fundamental piece of social regeneration. Through an intense network of collaboration, results like these are achieved which look to the future and express signs of closeness to the entire community, regenerating the socio-economic fabric of our city”.

The words of deputy mayor Mondello

Deputy Mayor Mondello retraced the stages of these years, explaining that “we started from scratch on the topic and today we talk about scholarships. I always remember an anecdote from 2018, when, during an inspection, a lady told me that she preferred to think about the future of her son enrolled in mechanical engineering rather than the need to have a house. Here today we have given substance to those who expressed themselves in those terms. The shantytown in the city center was a centuries-old disgrace that absolutely needs to be erased and we are now close to the finish line.”

Councilor Calafiore expressed herself in positive terms “for the important social impact of this initiative which also represents a cultural change. Not just the delivery of homes, but restoring social dignity, inserting ten young people into the city fabric and opening up new perspectives for them.”

The Siracusan undersecretary of state spoke of “a Messina model to be replicated elsewhere and as an example for everyone. Today, with a fundamental step, a path started with the rehabilitation is completed, but which over time has led to the creation of a system towards improving living conditions for young people from the most disadvantaged areas of Messina”.

President La Cava focused his speech “on the strategic importance of this project, especially in Southern Italy, where one young person in five graduates, compared to three young graduates in ten in the Center and North, while President Asquini mentioned “the great results obtained in recent years through a integrated approach, building various paths of social inclusion and seizing the opportunities for a definitive and concrete inclusion”.

The general secretary of ANSI Ricevuto underlined the central role of the institutions in the context of “the proposal of the National Italian School Association aimed at ten young graduates from the areas subject to redevelopment who will be able to attend University for three years without paying tuition”.

Subcommissioner Scurria, after having retraced “the various stages experienced together with deputy mayor Mondello during the De Luca administration and the gratifying results achieved”, explained the contents, methods and times of the tender aimed at improving the quality of life of the most vulnerable categories.

The official of the Ioculano Provincial School Office declared how “today we live in an era of crisis and high school dropout; this initiative, however, is to be praised because it is aimed at young people who are faced with situations of marginalization and have the opportunity to relaunch themselves”.

The 10 scholarships, worth €6,600, each per participant, intended for young graduates, in possession of the requirements analytically indicated in the “RINASCI-MENTI” project regulations, are intended for young people leaving higher education courses, coming from or still present in the rehabilitation areas of the Municipality of Messina, for enrollment and attendance of one of the three-year degree courses at the telematic universities of the Multiversity group (Pegaso, Mercatorum, San Raffaele). Young people in possession of the following minimum requirements at the date of issue of the selection notice are eligible to participate:

a) high school diploma obtained in the school years indicated in the art. 2;

b) young people coming from or still present in the rehabilitation areas of the Municipality of Messina identified by the decrees issued in 2021 and 2024 by the Extraordinary Commissioner of the Government for the Redevelopment of the Slums of the City of Messina.

To participate in the scholarship award, candidates must produce: