Representatives from the Africa-EU Continent-to-Continent Migration and Mobility Dialogue (C2CMMD) jointly committed to deeper cooperation in a comprehensive, integrated, and balanced manner, and shared responsibility and full respect of international law and human rights. At the Senior Officials Meeting last week in Brussels, representatives of the African Union and European Union reviewed the progress of Nairobi Action Points, which had guided the Dialogue since 2019; and how these have evolved in response to emerging needs and priorities on both continents.
The Senior Officials endorsed the revised C2CMMD Action Points, setting out joint actions for implementation until the end of 2028. These Action Points cover a wide range of themes in migration governance, remittances, diaspora engagement, preventing and combatting migrant smuggling and human trafficking, free movement of people, return, readmission and reintegration, legal pathways; as well as climate change and mobility as a new thematic priority under the Dialogue.
In their opening remarks, Patricia Llombart Cussak, Managing Director of the European External Action Services (EEAS), and Ambassador Namira Negm, Director of the African Migration Observatory (AMO) on behalf of the African Union Commission, underlined the strategic importance of migration and mobility within the wider AU-EU partnership.
Participants exchanged views on cooperation in the areas of return, readmission and reintegration, and legal pathways, sharing updates on recent developments and outlining their respective priorities going forward. Discussions on return, readmission and reintegration drew on the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum which entered into application in June 2026 and the AU Guidelines on Return, Readmission and Reintegration launched in August 2026. They also covered efforts to address the root causes of irregular migration, and to prevent migrant smuggling and trafficking in human beings.
On legal pathways, participants discussed how safe, orderly and regular migration can contribute to economic, social and human development in countries of origin, transit, and destination, the positive contribution of diasporas and remittances, and the role of continental and regional dialogues in advancing cooperation in this area. Participants underlined that progress across all areas of the Dialogue should advance in a balanced and mutually reinforcing manner.
The meeting reaffirmed the role of the C2CMMD as a platform for strengthening a balanced and reciprocal AU-EU partnership on migration and mobility. Going forward, the Action Points will guide the Dialogue’s work until the end of 2028 and contribute to cooperation under the broader AU-EU partnership, including the commitments made at the seventh AU-EU Summit in Luanda, Angola, in November 2025.