(18 October 2019) – During the European Week of Regions and Cities 2019, Patricia Martínez Sáez (AEIDL) attended three workshops on different topics related to migrant integration.
While many EU Members States have been receiving migrants for decades, pople with a migrant background still have far less access to education, health services or employment than resident citizens of indigenous origin.
The European Union has been deploying a large number of resources, such as the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund, the EU programme for Employment and Social Innovation, and the Rights, Equality and Citizenship programme, to improve conditions for migrant populations. Nonetheless, these economic efforts have not achieved their full potential. How can we improve the contribution of EU Funds to the integration of migrants? This was the topic of a workshop held on 8 October at the Brussels Convention Centre Gold Hall.
While two-thirds of third country nationals live in metropolitan areas in Europe, migration is not always an urban phenomenon. The settlement in one place or another can predetermine the way in which the newcomers access certain services and markets and thus their further integration. How can we deal with that challenge? This issue was addressed in two other workshops held on 8 and 10 October.