On 28 May 28 2021, ICMPD’s SUPREME project held an online conference on Turkey’s Priorities on Irregular Migration and Return. Constituting SUPREME’s final project activity, the conference brought together crucial national and international stakeholders in the field of irregular migration.
ICMPD Turkey organised a conference focusing on Turkey’s current and future priorities on irregular migration and return. Through three different panel discussions, representatives from the Directorate General of Migration Management (DGMM), Turkish Red Crescent (TRC), Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TİKA), Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA), United Kingdom Embassy in Turkey, Afghanistan Embassy in Turkey, Delegation of the EU to Turkey, ICMPD, IRARA Afghanistan and Code Pakistan discussed various components of irregular migration.
In the opening part of the conference, facts and figures as to Afghanistan’s emigration situation, the country’s priorities in migration and its cooperation with Turkey, as well as current records as to irregular migration in Turkey and the activities of the Turkish Red Crescent (TRC) in this field were shared. In the scope of Panel I of the Conference, an in-depth discussion on the political process and the security situation in Afghanistan and its possible implications on migration, the current migration situation in Pakistan following COVID-19 and the possible impact of migratory movements from Afghanistan and Pakistan on irregular migration to the UK in the aftermath of COVID-19 took place.
In the second panel, the panellists discussed the challenges and future prospects in return and reintegration in Afghanistan, Turkey’s development aids and TIKA’s future role in the area of reintegration and recent trends in irregular migration to Turkey and Turkey’s responses for effective migration management.
The last panel of the Conference dealt with Turkey’s priorities in ensuring sustainable cooperation with countries of origin, gains and future of EU-Turkey Cooperation, the importance of migration dialogues and regional cooperation in combating irregular migration.
The conference was held under ICMPD’s Strengthening Utilization of Additional Policies and Measures for Reinforcing Migration Management in Turkey (SUPREME) project, funded by the United Kingdom and implemented in cooperation with the Directorate General of Migration Management (DGMM).