Enhancing the OSCE long-term approach to migration governance

Migration governance is now at the centre of political debate in the OSCE area. The 2016 OSCE German Chairmanship has selected ‘good migration governance’ as one of the priorities in the Economic and Environmental dimension in line with the increasing impact of migration on, economic development and security in the OSCE region and beyond.

The aim of the Expert meeting is to suggest needs and mechanisms to increase the effectiveness of tools that would assist the participating States in meeting the challenges stemming from a rapidly changing migration scenario, as well as identify areas for improved engagement and enhanced role for the Office. To this end, a “Food-for-Thought” paper, containing key recommendations on this matter, will be elaborate and distributed before the meeting that will serve as a peer-review process.

The “Food-for-Thought” paper will also provide the OCEEA’s contribution to the Informal Working Group on Migration (IWG), established under the guidance of the Permanent Representative of Switzerland to the OSCE, in view of the special Permanent Council (PC) meeting devoted to migration scheduled for 20th July 2016.

Building on its mandate, grounded in the 1975 Helsinki Final Act and shaped further by the Ljubljana Ministerial Council Decision no. 02/05 on Migration, and the Athens Ministerial Council Decision no. 05/09 on Migration management, and with the intention to build upon the outcomes of the “Security Day” event held in Rome on 4^th March 2016, where the migration-security nexus was discussed, the Office of the Coordinator of Economic and Environmental Activities (OCEEA) currently continues to exercise its mandate and conduct activities in the field of migration governance.

The Expert meeting will discuss the following aspects:

1. The OCEEA’s mandate and achievements in the field of labour migration governance, including the role of Field Operations;
2. Emerging challenges and areas for action and policy guidance, including with the Partners for Co-operation.
3. The contribution of the OSCE economic dimension to the global frameworks of migration governance.

The International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD), the International Labour Organization (ILO), the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the United Nations’ Department of Economic and Social Affairs, UNDESA – together with national and international specialists in the field of migration governance, including OSCE Executive Structures and Institutions, academia and research entities, as well as selected civil society representatives will attend the event. 

The participants will be asked to actively contribute to this peer-review process of the “Food-for-Thought” paper through an interactive discussion. The key findings of the Expert meeting will be also collected in a report that will be published soon after the event.