News

From 20 – 24 September, the Migration City-to-City project is organising the MC2CM Days, a four-day conference opened by a high-level dialogue in Brussels. ICMPD Director General Michael Spindelegger opened the conference and emphasised the role of cities and local governments in the sphere of migration.

The signing ceremony of a partnership programme between ICMPD and the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs (MEAE) took place on 14^th September 2021 in Paris. The partnership programme was drawn up to further develop and strengthen the signatories’ long-standing partnership and institutionalise cooperation in the area of migration governance in a spirit of partnership and mutual trust, in order to create synergies between the activities of the signatories.

On 8 September 2021, ICMPD Director General Mr. Michael Spindelegger met with a high-level delegation of the Kyrgyz Republic led by Mr. Talant Mamytov, Speaker of the Parliament of the Kyrgyz Republic. Guided by the will to continue, deepen and extend cooperation, a Memorandum of understanding was signed by both parties to define the direction of joint efforts for the future.

On 17-20 August 2021, the official launch of the new project “Strengthen the National Observatory Capacity to Tackle Trafficking in Persons in Cabo Verde” (OBSERVE-CV) took place in Praia, Cabo Verde. This is the largest ICMPD bilateral programme implemented in Cabo Verde.

On 22 August, the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) signed a partnership agreement with the World Maritime University (WMU) to support the development of the Integrated Maritime Strategy of Lebanon. This agreement was signed in the framework of the European Union funded project “Strengthening Capability for Integrated Border Management in Lebanon” (EU IBM Lebanon Phase 3).

In collaboration with the Strengthening Border Security in Ghana (SBS Ghana) project, the Management of the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) organised a series of Gender Sensitisation Workshops to champion gender parity within the Service. The European Union Emergency Trust Fund for Africa (EUTF) funded SBS Ghana Project organised the first workshop in Accra for Management members in June while the second workshop was held in Aburi on August 23-24 for all eighteen (18) regional commanders of the Service.

A Seat Agreement between the Government of Ghana and the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) was signed on the 25 August 2021 in the premises of the Embassy of Ghana in Vienna, Austria.

On 15 June, Dr Ayache Khellaf, Secretary General of the Moroccan High Commission for Planning (HCP) and Dr Mohamed Khachani, President of the Moroccan National Committee of the North African Migration Academic Network (NAMAN), signed a MoU to host the Moroccan NAMAN. The MoU will ensure its sustainability and scalability beyond the end of the eMGPP project in October 2021.

The Prague Process Training Academy is entering a new phase by launching the E-learning Platform.

The platform is meant to serve the Prague Process states and partners with educational material for self-paced independent remote learning on migration and asylum. In times when in-person learning is reduced, e-learning tools become a safe and effective alternative to face-to-face classroom settings offering a convenient way for busy professionals to gain, enrich or refresh knowledge on migration matters.

The platform currently hosts three online courses on labour migration, identification and profiling, and integrated border management (IBM). The first two courses feature a series of short videos, quizzes and further readings. Meanwhile, the IBM course comprises rich written material with quizzes. All courses are available in English and Russian and can be repeated multiple times and adjusted to individual schedules without the risk to lose progress. Upon completing a course, successful participants receive a certificate of completion.

In order to access courses, users should register on the platform and enrol in the courses of their choice. The registration process is simple and straightforward, and the enrolment is done in one click. You are invited to watch a short explainer video to get around.

On 03 - 06 August 2021, ICMPD trainers held the first Return Counselling Training for the National Stakeholders of the Turkish National Assisted Voluntary Return and Reintegration Programme. The training is carried out within the new ReConnect Project and marks the beginning of a training series.

The EUROMED Migration V project in cooperation with the Observatory of Public Attitudes to Migration (OPAM) just released a new study on migration narratives titled “Immigration narratives in the Euro-Mediterranean region: what people believe and why.” The publication is authored by the Head of OPAM, Dr. James Dennison.

In 2013, during the UN General Assembly, the Member States adopted the resolution A/RES/68/192 and designated July 30 as the World Day against Trafficking in Persons (TIP). The day is dedicated to “raise awareness of the situation of victims of human trafficking and for the promotion and protection of their rights.” To mark the day, the ICMPD Anti-Trafficking Programme highlights the importance of effective transnational and cross-border cooperation as an essential tool for successful counter-trafficking actions, including timely and adequate identification and support to the victims.

On 13 July, ICMPD organised a workshop for Moldovan stakeholders as part of the project “Development of a Forced-Return Monitoring System in the Republic of Moldova” (FReMM) to discuss the key elements of a management framework for the country’s emerging system of forced-return monitoring. The workshop gathered management-level representatives from the Moldovan Bureau for Migration and Asylum, People’s Advocates Office of Moldova, the NGO Law Centre of Advocates, as well as ICMPD project and expert team.

On 8 July 2021, ICMPD held a virtual senior expert roundtable to discuss how migrants and policymakers can make better use of information in the context of irregular migration. The meeting brought together a diverse range of senior experts from EU and ICMPD Member States, international organisations, research centres and other relevant bodies for a lively conversation on this evolving and increasingly popular topic within migration management. Participants discussed the role of ICT and social media in particular for migrants’ decision-making as well as for governments’ monitoring and forecasting.

ICMPD’s ENHANCER Project held a press conference in Ankara to announce three different grant calls for proposals to support entrepreneurship and job creation through various means. The press conference once again markets the excellent collaboration among ICMPD, EUD and the Ministry of Industry and Technology.