News

BOMCA 10 has launched a Call for applications for Central Asian CSOs to participate in the Boot Camp on the Project Management Cycle, set to take place in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, in May 2025. Applications are accepted until 4 April 2025. 

In commemoration of International Women’s Day, ICMPD hosted a webinar titled Women on the Move: Advancing Gender Mainstreaming in Immigration Services Across West Africa. The session focused on the importance of gender equity in immigration services, particularly in Ghana and Nigeria, and brought together key stakeholders to share insights, challenges, and best practices in fostering a more gender-balanced workforce.

On the occasion of the Kingdom of Sweden taking on the Chairmanship of International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) Steering Group for 2025, European Commissioner for Internal Affairs and Migration Magnus Brunner outlined the EU’s migration priorities such as improving return policies, promoting labour mobility, and combatting migrant smuggling. Mr Brunner also called for a “flexible, responsive and pragmatic” approach, and commended ICMPD’s work along key migratory routes, and its multi-dimensional way of thinking.

The Government of Pakistan, through the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development (MOPHRD), has formally launched the Sustainable Reintegration of Returnees and Improved Migration Management project, known as R&R Pakistan.

After Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, most displaced persons seeking protection in Europe initially expected to stay only temporarily. As the war persisted however, many reconsidered their plans and adapted to prolonged displacement.

On 11 February 2025, a two-day training on Irregular Migration, Migrant Smuggling, and Human Trafficking was successfully conducted in Erbil, Kurdistan Region of Iraq, implemented under the NORAQ cooperation framework. This capacity-building initiative was organised in collaboration with the Ministry of Interior of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD), in the scope of projects “Migration Awareness, Access to Reintegration, and Strengthening Capacities in Iraq (MAARC)” and “Sweden-Iraq Cooperation on Migration Governance (SICOM)”.

The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) of Pakistan has reported a 16% increase in the prevention of irregular migration attempts from the country in 2024, based on new border management systems developed with the support of ICMPD and international donors.

High-level representatives from 45 partner countries and international organisations met in Portugal on 29-30 January 2025 to culminate the country’s Chairmanship of the Rabat Process, and hand the Chairmanship over to Nigeria for 2025. Portugal is the second country to chair the Dialogue since the adoption of the current multi-annual strategic framework, the Cadiz Action Plan 2023-2027.

ICMPD Director General Michael Spindelegger met with Ukraine Vice Prime Minister Oleksiy Chernyshov, to discuss the newly established Ministry of Unity that he will lead as Minister, as well as ongoing cooperation on border management and supporting the needs for the return and reintegration of Ukrainians. 

The Strengthening Border Security (SBS) project in Ghana has successfully concluded, marking a major step in enhancing national and regional border security. Funded by the European Union Emergency Trust Fund for Africa and implemented by the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) in collaboration with the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS), the initiative has advanced Ghana’s border management capabilities, contributing to improved security across West Africa.

As of 2025, JVAP Follow-up has entered a new phase with the launch of an updated website and a revamped data collection platform. This marks a significant milestone for collaboration and transparency in addressing migration among African and European partners.

ICMPD has opened a new Migrant Resource Centre (MRC) in Sulaymaniyah, in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KR-I). The MRC promotes safe and regular migration processes for prospective migrants, combat trafficking and people-smuggling through raising awareness, pre-departure counselling for emigrants, post-arrival briefings to migrant workers, and re-integration support for returnees and internally displaced populations.

Vienna, 17 January 2025 – ICMPD selects a new Director General this year. This follows the end of the second and final five-year term of the incumbent, Director General Michael Spindelegger, in December 2025.

The International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) has released its annual forecast of the 10 migration issues that can shape international migration in 2025. For the first time in years, irregular migration and asylum figures in Europe have decoupled from global trends on displacement. Much suggests that this trend is the result of more restrictive migration policies globally, but it is still too early to speak of a sustainable development. The downward trend, however, will reinforce political debates in Europe that primarily focus on control, externalisation and return. 

In December 2024, the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) reached a significant milestone with the successful conclusion of the Modernising the Nigeria Immigration Service Workforce (MoNIS) Project. Supported by the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) and the Government of Denmark, this initiative has redefined standards for institutional efficiency, inclusivity, and innovation within the NIS.