On Monday 13 September 2004, Stadtwerke Gießen AG (SWG) welcomed back its trainee Abdülmesih Anter from the Slovak Republic. Abdülmesih Anter had completed a three-week internship abroad at the company Montostroj in Senec, a manufacturer of equipment for the construction industry.
The internship abroad is part of the mobility project of the European education programme Leonardo da Vinci. One of the aims of this programme is to improve the skills and competences of young people in initial vocational training in order to promote their integration into the labour market. The programme is funded by the European Community.
Abdülmesih Anter's work focussed on work preparation. There he analysed the work processes and documented them. He also created process chains for the business processes. He also had the opportunity to visit nearby Bratislava and a clay factory in Morda.
Abdülmesih Anter spent the last two days at the vocational school in Senec, where he was also accommodated. In English lessons, he presented his training company and vocational school, the Max Weber School, to the students and teachers. In German lessons, the cultural and economic similarities and differences between Germany and Slovakia were discussed.
For the SWG trainee, familiarising himself with the new EU member state was very important because Eastern Europe is becoming an increasingly important growth market for Germany.