News

On 23 June 2021, a webinar was convened within the framework of the C2CMMD to launch the study on Return, Readmission and Reintegration (RRR) Programmes in Africa. In their opening remarks, the AU Commissioner for Health, Humanitarian Affairs and Social Development, HE Amira El Fadil, EU Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ms. Ylva Johansson, and ICMPD’s Director General, Mr. Michael Spindelegger reiterated the importance of strengthening cooperation in line with respective agendas and priorities, reinforced by contributions from Managing Director at the European External Action Service, Ms. Rita Laranjinha, and Mme. Mariama Cisse, Director for  Social Affairs of the African Union Commission.

A new policy brief by the ICMPD Country Office in Turkey looks into ongoing cooperation between the EU and Turkey on migration matters, including the implementation of the 2016 EU-Turkey Statement.

The Counsellors at the Migrant Resource Centre (MRC) in Kabul, operated jointly by ICMPD and the Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation funded by the European Union, have seen a significant rise in migration related inquiries since the beginning of 2021. Currently, the MRC team counsel about 1,000 Afghans on a monthly basis, in-person, by phone and over message services. This is how they assess the current migration situation in Afghanistan.

On 19 June, Michael Spindelegger, ICMPD Director General, attended the Antalya Diplomacy Forum and took part in the high-level panel “Humanitarian Approach towards Refugees and Migrants”. On the panel, he was joined by Mr Antonio Vitorino (IOM Director General), Dr. Kerem Kinik (Red Crescent/IFRC) and Dr. Savaş Ünlü (Director DGMM Turkey). Andrea Sanke moderated the panel.

2020 will go down as a year that upended lives, systems and the modus operandi of the entire world. This past year saw severe public health and economic crises coupled with unprecedented changes in global mobility. Borders were closed, visa processes frozen and exceptional travel restrictions imposed – all overnight. The exponential loss of resources and livelihoods suddenly suffered by tens of millions of migrant workers has impacted well-being across the board.

The Ghana Immigration Service made an important step towards a new accountability system, in order to improve internal ethics and transparency with staff and citizens. The draft Code of Conduct for the Service was prepared during a workshop held between 14 and 18 June, in Accra.

ICMPD, under the framework of the MIgration EU expertise+ (MIEUX+) Initiative organised the High-Level Panel ‘Human capital and mobility at the service of the green economy’ as part of the official programme of the 14th edition of the ‘European Development Days.

The Strengthening Border Security in Ghana (SBS Ghana) project, funded by European Union Emergency Trust Fund for Africa (EUTF), has launched its second Demand Driven Facility (DDF) Call for Proposals - Support to innovative approaches and best practices on mobility and border management.

The MOBILAZE 2 project started in Azerbaijan in June 2021 to support the implementation of the Mobility Partnership with the EU. The project is funded by the EU and supports the implementation of an evidence-based migration and border management policy agenda in Azerbaijan, and will run for 36 months.

On 11 June 2021, ICMPD completed the delivery of two-day training sessions for the State Border Guard Service (SBGS) and the State Customs Service (SCS) of Ukraine on business process reengineering.

To celebrate the World’s Day against Child Labour (12 June) and the International Year for the Elimination of Child Labour (2021), ICMPD joins the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Action Pledge 2021 to eliminate child labour. 

On 2 June 2021, ICMPD held a virtual senior expert roundtable to discuss means of addressing irregular migration along migration routes. The meeting brought together senior experts from EU and ICMPD Member States, international organisations, EU institutions and other relevant bodies. Participants zoomed in on ways that partnerships and policies can better address irregular migration by looking along entire migration routes and considering the perspectives of countries of origin, transit and destination.

On 26 May 2021, ICMPD, in the framework of the project Libya’s Migration Technical Assistance Facility (LIBMITAF), took part in a mission to the southern city of Sabha, Libya. The mission was organised by the World Food Programme (WFP) Libya in order to discuss the needs and priorities of the Municipality together with Libyan and international stakeholders, including the mayor of Sabha, the EU Ambassador to Libya, and several UN representatives.

On 20 May, ICMPD Turkey and Western Balkans Regional Coordination Office hosted an international webinar on “Cooperation with Civil Society and Municipalities in Migration Management in Turkey and the Netherlands”. The webinar brought together representatives of public authorities, civil society organisations (CSOs) and local administrations from the Netherlands and Turkey to discuss best practices in cooperation in the field of migration management.

On 23 – 27 May, representatives nominated by the Jordanian Borders and Residency  Department (BRD), the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands as donor and ICMPD  gathered for the first basic training on document security. The event was organised at the Forensic Science Training Center in Amman.