News

The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies (wiiw) released its economic forecast for Central, East and Southeast Europe (CESEE) amid the outbreak of the coronavirus. The prognosis is unpromising, urging the countries to prepare for the worst year since the global financial crisis.  

The rest of Europe is likely to follow the Italian example of the coronavirus spread. The growing pressure on the national health systems and lockdown restrictions similar to those of China or Italy will drive a lot of countries and firms into financial difficulties, while the recession of the first half of 2020 could be among the deepest of all time.

In times of the coronavirus outbreak and the closure of state borders, the Prague Process Migration Observatory continues to release new publications.  Herewith, we gladly present you the new Policy brief "Russian nationals looking for refuge in the European Union" authored by Olga Gulina.

This policy brief analyses the past and present flows of Russian nationals seeking asylum in the EU identifies the main challenges and puts forward concrete recommendations for policymakers in Russia and the EU.

For the 7th time, ICMPD organises the International Summer School on Migration. The summer school is a joint initiative by two ICMPD-led projects: the “Sustaining Migration Management in Georgia” (ENIGMMA 2) project and the “Prague Process: Dialogue, Analyses and Training in Action” (PP DATA) initiative – component of the Mobility Partnership Facility (MPF).

ICMPD invites all interested candidates to apply through March 31st, 2020, midnight CET.

The Summer School takes place in Georgia from 28 June to 4 July 2020.

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.