News

On 12 February 2020, members of the Prague Process Secretariat at ICMPD had the pleasure to attend the lecture of Mr. Margaritis Schinas, Vice-President of the European Commission, at the Diplomatic Academy in Vienna.

Outlining the priorities of the new European Commission, Vice-President Schinas highlighted that the main theme for the coming five years would be a threefold ‘transition’ of the EU:

1. Transition into ‘Green Europe’, based on the recently announced ‘Green Deal’;
2. The Digital Transition, including the introduction of 5G technology and Artificial Intelligence as real game-changers to our way of life;
3. Transition into a resilient and cohesive EU, offering security and opportunities to its citizens.

The new October-December 2019 issue of the Prague Process Quarterly Review is now available for download in English and Russian.

This Quarterly review will first provide you with a snapshot on the most recent activities implemented within (or with the support of) the Prague Process. These activities covered a wide range of topics, reaching from trainings on migration data management and media reporting on migration to the innovative concept of Comprehensive Border Governance; from discussions on the New EU Strategy on Central Asia to the potential synergies between the Prague Process and the so-called Abu Dhabi Dialogue. This issue shall also briefly summarise the 2019 edition of the Vienna Migration Conference, which represents ICMPD’s annual flagship event, and shed light on the challenging situation of migrants in Bosnia and Herzegovina as well as on the latest policy developments concerning labour migration in the region. As usual, we would also like to share with you some interesting new publications, including the ones issued within the Prague Process Migration Observatory.

To see all issues please go to the section "Quarterly Review" under News & Events.

While the year is coming to an end, the Prague Process Migration Observatory releases yet another Policy brief "Russia's Migration Policy after the dissolution of the Federal Migration Service" authored by Dmitry Poletaev.

This policy brief outlines the key effects of the dissolution of the Federal Migration Service (FMS) of Russia in 2016, identifies the main migration policy challenges and proposes practical steps to modernising Russia’s migration management system.

The adoption of the New EU Strategy on Central Asia in June 2019 put forward the need to translate its strategic objectives related to migration and border management into concrete actions. To launch the work in this direction, the Ministry of the Interior and Administration of Poland and the Prague Process Secretariat at ICMPD jointly organised the conference “Areas of cooperation on migration with Central Asia” in Warsaw on 4 December 2019.

The Prague Process Migration Observatory releases its new Policy brief "Assessing the EU's External Migration Policy" authored by Kristof Tamas.

The policy brief looks at the effectiveness of the EU instruments for cooperation on migration and suggests that the EU should now explore how partner countries’ interests can be better accommodated within the existing cooperation framework.

The Prague Process Migration Observatory releases its new Policy brief "The EU Central Asia Strategy and Its Impact on Migration" authored by Yan Matusevich.

The policy brief assesses the novelties of the new EU Central Asia Strategy 2019 and the particular place for migration in it. The brief suggests that the EU can no longer afford looking at migration and mobility solely through the prism of security and stability. The time has come to adopt a more comprehensive and active approach centred on promoting migration opportunities rather than containing
migration challenges.

On 23-24 October 2019, ICMPD organised the second International Conference on Comprehensive Border Governance in Yerevan. Following the success of its first edition held in Lebanon in 2018, this year the invitation was extended to all Prague Process states. The event thus gathered 80 state representatives and experts, including policy-makers, academic experts, various public institutions and agencies, as well as private sector representatives working in the border governance sphere.

The new July-September 2019 issue of the Prague Process Quarterly Review is now available for download in English and Russian.

After providing a snapshot from the three latest Prague Process activities, this Quarterly Review will inform you about the outcomes of the conference on “Migration and Urban Development”, which assessed the ever more important role of cities in managing immigration and integration. This issue will also address the competition for the Ukrainian labour force as well as the dangers that such rapid exodus of the working-age population might entail. Moreover, it will update you on the temporary redistribution mechanism for migrants arriving in the EU through the Mediterranean Sea, as well as on the latest visa amendments in some of the Prague Process states. Finally, this 20^th issue will introduce you to the latest Prague Process publications and propose some additional reading on top.  

To see all issues please go to the section "Quarterly Review" under News & Events.

The Trainer's Manual "What is Trafficking in Human Beings?"  is now available online.

This Manual is a result of the rich expertise of its authors, Mr Madis Vainomaa, Project Manager and anti-trafficking expert, and Ms Ivanka Hainzl, Project Officer, both working at the ICMPD’s Anti-trafficking Programme. It was produced within the Prague Process Training Academy, which aims to enhance capacity building and the implementation of advanced trainings on migration-related issues across the Prague Process states by supplying the competent migration authorities with the necessary tools for organising own trainings in-house.  The manual is developed to serve the anti-trafficking stakeholders from the participating countries of the Prague Process. Migration practitioners can use this Manual as a practical guide on how to deliver knowledge to any target audience.

You can preview and download the manual under this link.

The 5^th Ministerial Consultation of the Abu Dhabi Dialogue took place in Dubai on 16-17 October 2019. Lithuania as the current Chair of the Prague Process accepted the invitation in order to promote the Prague Process at international level and ensure its adequate positioning among other Regional Consultative Processes (RCPs). Mr. Tautvydas Tamulevicius, Vice Minister of the Interior of Lithuania, took an active part in the Special Meeting and the High-Level Panel Discussion on Interregional Cooperation, where he was one of three panellists.