Enhancing cooperation among the Prague Process states

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The Prague Process Policy Talk ‘The EU’s New Pact on Migration and Asylum: What role for international cooperation?’ with Ms Maria-Myrto Kanellopoulou, member of the Cabinet of EC Vice-President for Promoting our European Way of Life, Margaritis Schinas, and Mr Martijn Pluim, Director for Migration Dialogues and Cooperation at ICMPD, will take place on 22 October 2020 at 10:30 CET.

This Policy Talk will focus on the Pact’s external dimension and possible ways for its operationalisation.

ICMPD Director General Mr. Michael Spindelegger and Ms. Gurlu Jabborzoda, Minister of of Labour, Migration and Employment of Population (MoLMEP) of Tajikistan have exchanged views on migration issues and signed a Memorandum on Understanding.

Irregular migration, including human trafficking, remains widespread in spite of all national and global efforts to counter it. In the post-Soviet space, the appearance of new independent states following the dissolution of the USSR has largely facilitated irregular migration. Various ethnic and territorial conflicts have accompanied the respective state formation processes, resulting in a continuous reforming of the migration authorities and attempts of international criminal groups to make use of the situation for their own purposes. The Islamic fundamentalism witnessed in some states has further aggravated the problem.

Since 2014, Ukraine has faced an armed conflict resulting in a humanitarian crisis and the internal displacement of large parts of its population. Their situation remains an emergency until today. The number of internally displaced persons (IDPs), which currently amounts to over 700,000 persons (or 1,5 Mio. according to the Ukrainian official sources) makes Ukraine the country with the most IDPs in Europe. The large-scale human displacement brought severe challenges, ranging from the socio-economic integration of IDPs in their host communities to their political, legal or psychological needs.

The new Analytical report 'Internal Displacement in Ukraine: Mapping the Flows and Challenges' authored by Dr. Natalia Husieva, Dr. Yekaterina Segida, Dr. Galina Kravchenkova and Dr.Tatiana Lesnichaya provides a time-space analysis of the forced internal displacement in the period 2014-2018. It presents the most imminent challenges faced by the IDPs and proposes possible solutions, taking into account the specific characteristics of individual regions as well as international good practices and lessons learned. Thereafter, the report proposes various measures aimed at developing and strengthening the resilience, independence and self-reliance of IDPs in Ukraine. Lastly, the report substantiates policy recommendations aimed at facilitating the adaptation and integration of IDPs into local communities.

To preview and download the report please use this link.

The ongoing outbreak of the COVID-19 revealed and further exacerbated some of the existing systemic challenges related to migrants and their stay in destination countries. The new infographic represents an attempt to outline some of the important factors increasing migrant vulnerabilities in times of the pandemic, as well as related policy measures and challenges thereof. This visualisation was first published in the Prague Process Quarterly Review No 23 April-June 2020.  Please preview and download the infographic in English or in Russian.

Our vast Repository contains all recent and older Publications, video-recordings of the webinars and interviews with state officials and academic experts, studies, manuals, Migration Profiles and more.

The 8th Prague Process webinar ‘Building better return and reintegration programs’ with Glen Swan, ICMPD Consultant on Assisted Voluntary Return and Reintegration, will take place on 6 October 2020 at 10:30 CET.

Assisted Voluntary Return and Reintegration (AVRR) is a continuing topic of interest in migration management.  Voluntary return is presented as a dignified method of return, but there are often many challenges associated with effectively implementing a successful AVRR program.  Accurate policy settings are part of the challenge, as are operational and political objectives.  This webinar presents a short background on AVRR program principles, discusses current operational challenges and provides recommendations for agile program design.

For some observers, the New Pact on Migration and Asylum — with proposals on mandatory screening of migrants at the border and stepping up the return of failed asylum seekers — goes too far. Others feel such measures are the minimum necessary and, if they cannot work, the very survival of the Schengen area may be at stake. Others still want to focus on stepping up the Union’s external engagement with third countries and promising ideas such as the Commission’s proposed talent partnerships.

The past 30 years have seen several waves of asylum seekers from the post-Soviet region reaching the EU, including from the Central Asian (CA) and Eastern Partnership (EaP) countries. Their relatively small numbers resulted in limited attention by the research community. Yet, in 2018, asylum seekers from the two regions accounted for over 7% of all first-time asylum applicants in the EU. The extremely low recognition rate of asylum applications and the broad demographic profile among asylum seekers from the eight countries examined suggests that they actually abuse the EU asylum system to improve their socioeconomic situation. The witnessed mixed flows of forced and voluntary migration from the EaP and CA states challenge the efficiency of the EU asylum and international protection system. Several aspects deserve particular attention in this respect: the inclusion of the CA and EaP countries in the lists of safe countries of origin (SCO), resulting in accelerated asylum procedures; and the need for proper awareness-raising about regular migration channels to the EU MS.

The new Background Note 'Asylum seekers from the Eastern Partnership and Central Asian Countries in the EU' authored by Dr. Olga R. Gulina and released by the Prague Process Migration Observatory provides a statistical overview on the inflows, demographic indicators and recognition rates of asylum seekers coming to the European Union, focusing on eight countries of origin, located in the Eastern Partnership and Central Asia region: Moldova, Ukraine and Georgia, as well as Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Tajikistan. The document entails evidence on the socio-economic and political push factors behind these flows and the policy context they are embedded in. Particular attention is given to the classification of these countries as so-called ‘safe countries of origin’, in spite of the ongoing or frozen territorial conflicts suffered by some of them. Several conclusions and recommendations are drawn at the end.

To preview and download the Note please use this link.

The Prague Process Migration Observatory and ICMPD's Regional Coordination Office for Eastern Europe and Central Asia (EECA) regularly monitor and collect the most recent news on a variety of migration-related topics from the EECA region. Herewith, we present you the latest edition of the MEDIA DIGEST covering news released in July 2020.

All previous editions of the Media Digest can be accessed here. New Digest issues are being published at the beginning of each month featuring news items of the previous month. Each issue provides readers with a concise overview of the main migration developments in the region. All news in the digest is grouped by country and category. To open a news item click on the link in the second column, that will take you to the original source. To navigate across the issues please 1) click on the issue you are interested in (e.g. July 2020); 2) click on "search tools" button at the top and use country/category filters to see the news most relevant to you. To remove all filters click "Clear" at the top.

Should you wish to share any relevant news with the Prague Process readers, please reach out to the Secretariat at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

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