Enhancing cooperation among the Prague Process states

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The Republic of Belarus is both a country of emigration and immigration. The positive net migration notwithstanding, the population of Belarus is slowly declining. Since 1996, it lost over 800,000 people including 60,000 persons in 2020 alone.

According to the 2019 population census, Belarus is home to some 764,000 immigrants most of whom originate from Russia, Ukraine and Kazakhstan. Over half of them came to Belarus for family reasons.  In the past decade, migration flows to the country have been steadily increasing and reached 34,846 in 2019. Overall, international migrants constitute 10-15% of the total population of Belarus. At the end of 2020, among the holders of temporary residence permits around 40% resided for studies, 24% for business reasons, and 24% due to family reunification.

This is the last issue of the Quarterly Review in 2021. Throughout the year, the Review covered a wide range of migration policies, dynamics, events and other issues informing our migration debates. Some concerned legislative amendments that will drive and define migration in the coming years. Others covered developments and trends across the Prague Process region and their possible implications. The Review also reported important milestones of the Prague Process: events and publications, the launch of the e-learning Platform and the first steps towards the Prague Process’ new political mandate to be granted by the Ministerial Conference in October 2022.

For over 20 years, the international community celebrates International Migrants Day on 18 December. The day was selected to mark the anniversary of the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1990. It is the day to praise the contributions made by migrants across the globe. Some of them fled conflicts, violence, war and environmental disasters. The majority, however, pursued economic goals given the lack of decent economic opportunities at home.

On 22 November, Dushanbe hosted the 17th EU-Central Asia Ministerial Meeting featuring the Foreign Ministers of Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, as well as the European Union’s (EU) High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and EU Commissioner for International Partnerships. The Parties met to discuss the state of cooperation between the EU and the countries of Central Asia and the prospects for expanding it in the areas of trade, investment and environment, as well as common security challenges. Participants also exchanged views on issues of mutual interest, such as the evolving situation in Afghanistan.   

On 22 November 2021, the annual Prague Process Senior Officials’ Meeting (SOM) took place in an online format. Formally hosted by the Czech Republic in its capacity of Prague Process Chair, the SOM gathered officials from the Prague Process countries, the European Commission, the EU Council, EASO, Frontex, IOM and ICMPD. Participating states were invited to comment on the first drafts of the Ministerial Declaration and Action Plan, as well as to reflect on current migration challenges at national, regional and international levels.

This SOM represented the first of three preparatory meetings towards the fourth Prague Process Ministerial Conference in October 2022 under the Czech Presidency of the EU Council. It followed the intergovernmental consultations on the six thematic priorities organised in May-June 2021. The draft Action Plan and Ministerial Declaration reflect the ideas collected during the intergovernmental consultations in each thematic area, proposing some new actions.

The Republic of Armenia has one of the highest emigration rates in the world, amounting to nearly one-third of its population. In the past, the considerable exodus occurred by virtue of various political and socioeconomic factors in the country, but 2018 saw some positive migration dynamics owing to the change of government with the policy focus slowly shifting to repatriation. The same year the national poverty rate fell to its lowest level since 2004, with 23.5% of the population still living below the poverty line. In 2019, economic growth also reached a significant 7.6%. According to the Household Survey 2019, 95% of respondents did not intend to leave for another country. More recently, however, the COVID-19 crisis has caused a compelling welfare loss and a sharp increase in unemployment, which may affect migratory flows.

On 19-20 October 2021, ICMPD organised the sixth edition of the annual Vienna Migration Conference, Europe’s leading forum on migration. Held in a hybrid format this year’s event looked at the most important developments – such as the COVID-19 pandemic, the unfolding situations in Afghanistan and Belarus, the realities on the ground along and across key migration routes – exploring challenges, opportunities and strategies for re-imagining, and ultimately strengthening migration partnerships.

Representing an essential tool of migration policy, migration partnerships bring many benefits, but developing and maintaining them is no straightforward task. These are the six key Conference takeaways on re-approaching migrations partnerships.

Data show that trafficking in human beings for sexual exploitation continues to be the most prevalent form of trafficking. Moreover, women continue to constitute the great majority of victims identified in Europe. Much fewer trafficking victims are identified in agriculture, construction, hospitality, domestic work, or begging.

The new Policy Brief 'The Role of Bias in the Identification of Victims of Trafficking in Human Beings in the EU' authored by Ludmila Bogdan provides a statistical overview of the victims identified across the EU (2017-2018) and aims to assess why identification programmes struggle to identify and assist male victims and those facing exploitation outside the sex industry. The key question raised is whether identification efforts are biased towards trafficking for sexual exploitation and female victims.

The online event 'Launch of the Prague Process E-Learning Platform' took place on 23 September 2021.

The event introduced the content and functionalities of the newly established e-Learning Platform, developed within the Prague Process Training Academy. The Prague Process Secretariat shared its plans concerning the development of further courses and other relevant ongoing or upcoming activities within the Training Academy and Migration Observatory. The e-Learning Platform provides educational material for independent, self-paced remote learning in English and Russian. In this way, it aims to provide the migration authorities of the Prague Process states with an overly flexible and user-friendly tool to enhance vocational training among their staff. The courses correspond to the six thematic areas of the Prague Process Action Plan.

This online event was reserved for the Prague Process participating states, representatives of international organizations and EU Agencies actively involved in the Process.

You may watch the recording in English or in Russian.

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