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This paper aims to shed light on the different guardianship models and practices that have been developed and implemented within the European Union (EU) for unaccompanied and separated children (UASCs) who have fled Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The review draws particularly on the findings of a prior project publication which analysed Poland’s approach to the administration and delivery of guardianship solutions and services for Ukrainian UASCs since 2022.

This paper aims to advise the Azerbaijani government on better engaging their diaspora. It covers good diaspora engagement practices in general as well as in selected countries. Additionally, it includes lessons learned after the COVID-19 pandemic and presents the kinds of support that can be given to members of the diaspora in times of crisis.

The present migration textbook provides a comprehensive overview of the migration field, exploring its historical roots, current trends, and future prospects. It covers a wide range of issues from across the migration spectrum, including the causes and consequences of migration, the experiences of migrants, the social and economic impacts of migration on sending and receiving countries, and the policies governing migration.

More than two years since the Taliban takeover, Central Asian states have hosted a small, but overlooked population of displaced Afghans. While the fears of an exodus from Afghanistan into Central Asia did not materialise, those Afghans who fled to Central Asia face a precarious future with limited opportunities for permanent settlement or onward migration.

This policy brief provides an overview of the situation around Afghans exiled in Central Asia, the responses of local governments and the international community. Looking towards the future, the brief also outlines what policy responses are needed to address the needs of Afghans in the region.

The Annual Report takes stock of the milestones, opportunities and challenges in the past year, along with recurring issues that have surfaced to reshape the migration discourse.

Based on 20 countries across Europe, North America and North Africa, this report synthesises key trends and patterns of national policy approaches towards migrant irregularity, highlighting commonalities and differences across various contexts. In particular, it examines three key research questions: how have irregular migration policies evolved over time and in response to what; what pathways into and out of irregularity have these policies produced or aimed to address; and what challenges have hindered policy implementation. In doing so, the report aims to contextualise irregular migration policy changes, as well as how such policies can channel migrants into or out of irregularity.

This working paper analyses EU policies, legal categories, rights and the options for and limits to returning irregular migrants. It includes the analysis of EU legal and policy frameworks on irregular migration, including their nexus with other policy areas (such as asylum, labour migration, and trafficking). It examines EU policies that are deemed to prevent irregular migration, but in fact create pathways into irregularity, and it describes EU legal options for pathways out of irregularity.

The Vienna Migration Conference 2023 (VMC2023) brought together international leaders, practitioners, and experts at the Palais Niederoesterreich on 10-11 October 2023, for two days of discussions on critical current and future issues in migration governance in Europe and beyond.

Die vorliegende Sonderauswertung beleuchtet die Situation der Arbeitsmarktintegration von Geflüchteten aus den Herkunftsländern Syrien, Afghanistan, Irak und Iran in Vorarlberg. Insgesamt nahmen im Zeitraum von 2018 bis 2022 in Vorarlberg 440 Personen an der FIMAS-Befragung teil – per Online-Fragebogen sowie durch telefonische Befragung. Ein Teil der Befragten nahm an mehreren Wellen teil – insgesamt umfasst die Vorarlberg-Stichprobe dadurch 512 Befragungsdatensätze – von Geflüchteten unterschiedlicher Herkunft, Geschlecht und Alters, und zu unterschiedlichen Zeitpunkten ihrer jeweiligen Integrationsverläufe.

This publication provides a regional perspective to ICMPD’s Migration Outlook 2024, delving into key current and emerging migration trends in the Mediterranean region, with a focus on North Africa and the Middle East.

As part of the Awareness Raising and Information Campaigns on the Risks of Irregular Migration in Pakistan – II (PARIM-II) project, this report explores the role of returnees in migration decision-making processes and investigates their potential engagement in the design and implementation of migration information and awareness raising campaigns.

The results of PARIM-II project, which are discussed in this report, draw not only from extensive qualitative and quantitative research conducted in the field between August 2023 and January 2024, but also from the previous project (PARIM-I), which looked instead at the migration intentions and information needs of Pakistani nationals wishing to migrate out of the country, including through irregular channels.1 By outlining the results of the current project and combining them with the previous one, this report aims at bringing together, analysing, and discussing the entire research component in a targeted way, providing insights for the potential information campaigns and communication strategies in this area. 

The Regional Migration Outlook for Eastern Europe and Central Asia (EECA) presents an analysis of the key events and trends that shaped migration in the EECA region in 2023. Simultaneously, it offers a cautious outlook into areas and issues that may affect migration and mobility to, within and from EECA in 2024. In a non-exhaustive way, the publication addresses developments in the twelve EECA countries (based on ICMPD’s regional division) – Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan. The analysis is based on ICMPD’s regional expertise and desk research from official and public data sources.

Assisted Voluntary Return and Reintegration (AVRR) programmes have emerged as a migration governance tool used by many national governments and supranational organisations in the 21st century. They fund—typically irregular or stranded—migrants to return to their origin countries whereafter they provide support aimed at “sustainable reintegration”. AVRR reintegration support is classified by the International Organization for Migration, which administers around 95% of AVRR programmes globally, as “economic”, “social”, and “psycho-social”. However, AVRR programmes have received several criticisms from academics and activists. The academic literature on measuring reintegration, identifying the causes of reintegration success, and identifying the causes of AVRR participation are nascent but provide a basis by which policymakers can understand how to improve AVRR outcomes. Therefore, this study identifies how communication can contribute to AVRR objectives.