Advanced bridge building : Migrant organizations as bonding or bridging social capital in the participatory society of Nijmegen

Abstract

Due to the enduring economic crisis of the past five years, The Netherlands are in a transition from a welfare society to a participatory society. This concept plays a major role in policies today and it was central in the King’s speech on 17 September 2013. In The Netherlands, the King’s speech is read annually by King Willem Alexander on the third Tuesday of September. In this speech, the plans of the government for the coming year are announced. In the speech of 2013, the King stated that the participatory society is necessary in order to reduce the financial deficit of the government, and therefore, people have to rely more on each other (social bridges) and have to take more responsibility, in particular at the level of the municipality. This transition to a participatory society therefore also takes place in the municipality of Nijmegen. This municipality argues that the participation of all the citizens in a district is desirable. However, it found it hard to reach their immigrant residents in the district. There does not seem to be a clear image of the existing migrant networks that may or may not have a physical location in the district.