The Commission welcomes the CARIM first annual Report on Mediterranean Migration - Main contents

The European Commission welcomes the report published by CARIM (Euro - Mediterranean Consortium for Applied Research on International Migration) on Mediterranean Migration in 2005 that was published today. The report should be considered as a key step in addressing the serious deficit in the statistical observation and analysis of migration flows on both shores of the Mediterranean. The Commission considers this report to be of high importance as it gives an overview of national migration policies in the Mediterranean region during 2005 and allows for a better understanding of the links between migration and development.

"The publication of this Report provides a comprehensive survey on this topic", Vice President of the Commission Franco Frattini said, "and marks the first ever to give a perspective from the South looking North rather than the other way around"

The Report contains a regional overview, followed by a section for each of the ten Mediterranean countries of the Middle East and North Africa (Med-MENA countries: Morocco,Algeria, Tunisia, Egypt, Palestinian Territories, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Turkey) comprising information about the demographic, economic, legal, and political dimensions of migration.

The European Union considers the management of flows through the Mediterranean region with a view to preventing humanitarian tragedies to be a key priority and this report will be very useful to the EU as it intensifies its cooperation with partner countries on the Southern shores of the Mediterranean and beyond.

Turning to some of the particular points raised in the report (downloadable at www.carim.org):

Emigration

The findings and statistics in the Report confirm that, Med-MENA countries are a major region of international emigration and that this emigration is gaining momentum. The report also suggests that the policymaking agendas of Med-MENA countries are still topped by the issues of labour, unemployment and underemployment rather than by emigration. Indeed, emigration is often noted to have the welcome consequence of alleviating pressure on domestic labour markets.

Immigration

The report also provides some interesting conclusions on the rates of immigration into Med-MENA Countries. The conclusions confirm the Commission's understanding that the Med-MENA, while remaining a major region of emigration, is at the same time transforming into a region of transit and destination of migrants.

This is clearly a new role for these countries and perhaps, unsurprisingly, the report highlights that the responsiveness of Med-MENA to immigration, both legal and illegal, varies substantially and generates very different living and working conditions for immigrant populations. The report suggests that Med-MENA countries will be faced in the future with the need to develop policies regulating immigration which focus not only on the regulation of illegal immigration, but primarily on the capacity of the domestic labour market to absorb newcomers, and that of the normative framework to protect their rights.

New destinations

The report also has some interesting information on the emigration of Med-MENA countries away from Europe and points out that, contrary to public perception, less than half of all Med-MENA first-generation emigration is bound for Europe. The Arab oil producing countries, i.e. the Gulf States and Libya, constitute the second largest destination, while the `new destinations'_the USA and Canada_ rank far behind in terms of total numbers. Although migrants from Med-MENA countries are still predominantly semi-skilled or unskilled in terms of total numbers, new types of labour migration are emerging and consist of people trained in the scientific, professional and intellectual disciplines.

Expatriate communities as an exploitable resource

The Report indicates that Med-MENA governments have realised the values of their diaspora communities abroad.

Present-day Med-MENA governments have established public institutions, and even ministries, to deal with emigrant issues. Protecting migrants civil rights in the host countries where they live, and maintaining their sense of belonging to their culture of origin by providing language courses and religious education to second-generation migrants, are key elements of such policies. There is little evidence, however, of the concrete impact of these policies or institutions on the linkages with origin countries on the one hand, and on patterns of integration in destination countries, on the other. These are aspects which the Commission is keen to explore further in the context of the follow up to its recent Communication on the linkages between Migration and Development.^[1]

Illegal immigration

The report also contains some interesting findings on the development of policies to regulate illegal immigration. This issue is of key importance to both the EU and Mediterranean partners as many migrants arrive illegally in the Med-MENA countries as a means of transit to their ultimate destination in the EU. Intense migratory pressures, if not managed effectively, can have tragic humanitarian disaster as has been evidenced by drownings in the Mediterranean Sea over the summer and by recent events in Morocco and Ceuta and Melilla.

The report observes that most Med-MENA countries have implemented measures to expel or deport over-stayers and rejected asylum-seekers in response to a pressing need. However, the report also signals that for the future, these countries will need to adopt a more balanced approach which seeks to ensure adequate legal protections for migrants and to adopt policies which transform immigration into a positive component of social and civil development.

The CARIM was launched by the European Commission (EuropeAid Cooperation Office) in February 2004, and is established at the Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies of the European University Institute.

^[1] "Migration and Development: Some concrete orientations" COM(2005) 390 final.