Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions - Strengthening the global approach to migration: increasing coordination, coherence and synergies
Date: 2008-10-08
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU migration policy, admission of aliens, border control, foreign policy, illegal migration, integration of migrants, migration control, political cooperation

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COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 8.10.2008 
COM(2008) 611 final 

COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN 
PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL 
COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS 

STRENGTHENING THE GLOBAL APPROACH TO MIGRATION:  
INCREASING COORDINATION, COHERENCE AND SYNERGIES 

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COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN 
PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL 
COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS 

STRENGTHENING THE GLOBAL APPROACH TO MIGRATION:  
INCREASING COORDINATION, COHERENCE AND SYNERGIES 

1. 

INTRODUCTION  

The Global Approach to migration can be defined as the external dimension of the European 
Union's  migration  policy.  It  is  based  on  genuine  partnership  with  third  countries,  is  fully 
integrated into the EU's other external policies, and addresses all migration and asylum issues 
in a comprehensive and balanced manner. Adopted in 2005, it illustrates the ambition of the 
European Union to establish an inter-sectoral framework to manage migration in a coherent 
way through political dialogue and close practical cooperation with third countries.  

The  Global  Approach  has  already  been  the  subject  of  three  specific  Commission 
Communications  over  the  past  three  years1,  setting  out  short-term  measures  in  relation  to 
particular geographical areas and countries. In December 2007, the Global Approach was also 
the  focus  of  an  interim  progress  report2.  Several  other  Communications,  without  having  the 
Global  Approach  as  their  main  focus,  have  also  fed  into  one  or  more  of  its  three  essential 
dimensions, i.e. management of legal migration, the fight against irregular immigration, and 
migration and development.  

It  is  evident  from  these  documents  that  the  Global  Approach  is  still  an  evolving  process 
although  many  important  results  have  already  been  achieved.  The  setting  up  of  a  migration 
information  and  management  centre  in  Mali,  mobility  partnerships  in  Cape  Verde  and 
Moldova, capacity building in national employment and migration agencies such as the one in 
Morocco, and a migration researcher's network across the Mediterranean are some of the most 
promising initiatives.3 Nevertheless, it is now time to strengthen the EU's external migration 
management so that it can become better coordinated and more coherent.. 

The Communication of June 2008 on A Common Immigration Policy for Europe highlighted 
the  need  to  strengthen  the  Global  Approach  to  ensure  a  coherent,  common  European 
migration  policy4,  reiterating  the  principle  that  effective  management  of  migration  flows 
requires  genuine  partnership  and  cooperation  with  third  countries  and  that  migration  issues 
should  be  fully  integrated  into  the  EU's  development  cooperation  and  external  policies,  as 
well as incorporate issues emerging from them. These elements should also be reflected in the 

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Priority  actions  for  responding  to  the  challenges  of  migration:  First  follow-up  to  Hampton  Court  - 
COM(2005) 621; The Global Approach to Migration one year on: Towards a comprehensive European 
migration  policy  -  COM(2006)  735;  Applying  the  Global  Approach  to  Migration  to  the  Eastern  and 
South-Eastern Regions Neighbouring the European Union - COM(2007) 247. 
Interim report on the progress of the overall approach in the field of migration - SEC(2007) 1632. 
The Migration Information and Management Centre (CIGEM); the Euro-Mediterranean Consortium for 
Applied  Research  on  International  Migration  (CARIM)  and  L'agence  nationale  de  promotion  de 
l'Emploi et des Competences (ANAPEC). 
A Common Immigration Policy for Europe: principles, actions and tools - COM(2008) 359. 

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European Pact on Immigration and Asylum due to be adopted by the European Council, the 
present Communication aiming to be one of its first building blocks.  

The Communication is also a response to the European Council’s call to the Commission to 
report  on  what  is  being  done  to  implement  the  Global  Approach.  It  sets  out  prospects  and 
suggests  both  substantive  and  methodological  improvements  to  the  Global  Approach, 
focusing on  ways of improving  coordination, coherence  and synergies. The Communication 
examines the relevance of the thematic development of the Global Approach and argues for 
deepened and more specific actions. It then focuses on the geographical aspects and suggests 
a more differentiated approach to cooperation gearing it to the specific context of the various 
regions and countries. Finally, it considers the Global Approach as a framework for coherence 
and  coordination  in  achieving  better  governance  of  migration  flows,  and  its  efficiency  in 
terms of the available financing instruments.  

Strengthening the external aspects of asylum and  protection of  refugees is  a key element of 
the  EU's  approach  to  migration  but  will  not  be  covered  here  as  these  aspects  are  addressed 
separately in the Asylum Policy Plan presented by the Commission in June 20085. 

2. 

RELEVANCE OF THE GLOBAL APPROACH AT THE THEMATIC LEVEL  

The  Global  Approach  reflects  a  major  change  in  the  external  dimension  of  the  European 
migration  policy  over  recent  years,  namely  the  shift  from  a  primarily  security-centred 
approach  focused  on  reducing  migratory  pressures,  to  a  more  transparent  and  balanced 
approach guided by a better understanding of all aspects relevant to migration, improving the 
accompanying measures to manage migratory flows, making migration and mobility positive 
forces for development, and giving greater consideration to decent work aspects in policies to 
better manage economic migration. 

The EU has built the multidimensional character of the Global Approach on a thematic basis, 
covering legal migration and mobility, irregular immigration, and migration and development. 
Many concrete actions on the ground preceded the Global Approach, although many of them 
tended to be done in isolation. Yet, the very nature of the Global Approach points to the need 
to  combine  more  systematically  action  by  the  Community,  EU  Member  States,  and  third 
countries or other players, pertaining to the various thematic fields.  

2.1. 

Legal economic migration and mobility 

The EU supports efforts to strengthen third countries’ capacities to manage legal migration, 
including by facilitating the work of the national services or of autonomous centres in charge 
of  counselling  potential  migrants  and/or  their  nationals  abroad.  As  reiterated  in  the  June 
Communication  on  a  common  European  immigration  policy,  third  countries  should  also  be 
seen as partners when it comes to addressing labour needs in the EU, whilst keeping in line 
with  the  Community  preference  for  EU  citizens.  So,  the  EU  needs  to  invest  in  informing 
potential  migrants  about  the  legal  opportunities  for  access  to  the  EU  and  the  risks  of  using 
irregular  immigration  options,  and  about  their  rights  and  obligations  in  the  destination 
countries.  To  this  end,  a  migration  portal  to  help  potential  migrants  to  understand  the  rules 
and  procedures  for  legal  access  to  the  EU  and  its  Member  States  will  be  presented  in  due 
course.Such information will also be communicated through targeted information campaigns. 

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Policy Plan on Asylum: an Integrated Approach to Protection Across the EU - COM(2008) 360. 

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The pilot Mobility Partnerships are also relevant, , the first two signed on 5 June 2007 with 
the  Republics  of  Moldova  and  Cape  Verde,  as  they  establish  an  overall  framework  for 
migration management with individual third countries. 

A  more  highly  developed  common  European  immigration  policy  will  need  to  give  more 
thought to ways of matching jobseekers to vacancies and to allowing for more flexible access 
for  labour  migrants.  This  means  that  work  in  areas  such  as  recognition  of  foreign 
qualifications, exploring the portability of pension rights and other welfare entitlements, and 
promoting  labour  market  integration  at  both  ends  of  the  migration  pathway  and  social 
inclusion  of  migrants  and  development  of  inter  cultural  skills,  needs  to  be  stepped  up  and 
given  much  higher  priority.  Moreover,  ensuring  the  full  implementation  of  the  researchers' 
visa  package6  fostering  the  admission  and  mobility  for  research  purposes  of  third-country 
nationalities will be crucial. 

Mobility for the purpose of short  stays  and  business is  becoming increasingly important for 
the EU's economic development. The EU and its Member States therefore have an interest in 
promoting short-term mobility, in particular by simplifying the travel conditions of bona fide 
travellers  from  certain  third  countries,  in  particular,  those  neighbouring  the  EU..  The  Visa 
Information System (VIS), which will become operational in 2009, will be accompanied by a 
gradual  roll-out  to  all  third  countries  subject  to  the  visa  obligation  by  2011.  Moreover, 
concurring with the June 2008 Council Conclusions, the Commission will present a proposal 
for a registered traveller system by the beginning of 2010.  
Also the Community Code on Visas7 will boost information provision and legal certainty for 
visa applicants and strengthen the procedural guarantees by requiring reasons to be given for 
any  visa  applications  rejection.  Equal  treatment  of  visa  applicants  should  benefit  from 
harmonised  procedures  and  there  will  be  provisions  on  the  increased  issuance  of  multiple 
entry visas with a long validity to bona fide applicants. 

In this context, the Commission proposes to:  

•  Implement  and  then  evaluate  the  first  generation  of  mobility  partnerships  with  a  view  to 
extend their use as a key mechanism for strategic cooperation with selected third countries, 
while taking into account EU external priorities.  

•  Further develop national capacities and migration information and management centres in 

relevant countries, taking into account the various ongoing experiences. 

•  Make  more  systematic  use  of  information  channels  to  inform  migrants  about  admission 
conditions, their obligations and rights, including fundamental rights, and to prepare them 
for  integration  where  relevant  also  in  cooperation  with  the  social  partners  in  third 
countries. 

•  Develop  labour-matching  tools  and  stimulate  twinning  between  labour  market  agencies 

and key institutions in Member States and third countries. 

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OJ L 289, 3.11.2005, p. 15; OJ L 289, 3.11.2005, p. 23; OJ L 289, 3.11.2005, p. 26. 
Proposal  for  a  regulation  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  establishing  a  Community 
Code on Visas - COM(2006) 403. 

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•  Stimulate  the  exchange  of  best  practices  between  Member  States,  migrant  and  diaspora 
associations as well as regional and local actors in third countries in the area of integration 
of migrants. 

•  Provide  incentives  for  circular  migration  by  setting  up  or  strengthening  legal  and 

operational measures such as: 

•  compiling best practices and launching circular migration pilot initiatives to boost 
the  contribution  that  circular  migration  can  make  to  development  in  source 
countries and to ensure that such mobility responds to market needs in destination 
countries;  and  does  not  contribute  to  brain  drain  exploring  specific  tools  to 
facilitate  circular  migration  and  brain  circulation  such  as  "dual  posts"  (e.g.  for 
health professionals, teachers and researchers) and twinning between public sector 
employers and institutions in EU Member states and migrant source countries, and 
to help migrants reintegrate in source country labour markets, 

•  explore  ways  to  granting  legal  immigrants  the  right  to  priority  access  to  further 
legal  residence  in  the  EU,  and  examine  how  the  portability  of  acquired  social 
rights  to  third  countries,  notably  the  payment  of  pensions  may  facilitate  such 
mobility. 

•  Develop  common  visa  application  centres  with  the  purpose  of  facilitating  applicants' 

access to submitting applications. 

2.2. 

Fight against irregular immigration 

The EU offers assistance for strengthening border management in third countries, for capacity 
building for border guards and for migration officials, for financing information campaigns on 
the risks of irregular immigration, for improving reception conditions, and for developing the 
use of biometric technologies to make travel or identity documents more secure. FRONTEX 
and the Immigration Liaison Officers Networks have been instrumental in achieving progress 
in this regard. The Council has invited the Commission to consider extending the mandate of 
FRONTEX  with  regard  to  the  support  the  Agency  can  provide  to  third  countries  on  border 
management.  Furthermore,  readmission  agreements  have  been  concluded  between  the 
Community and eleven third countries. Another negotiation has recently been completed and 
a  further  four  negotiating  mandates  are  yet  to  be  pursued.  The  practicalities  of  these 
agreements will require efficient cooperation and accompanying measures for the return and 
reintegration of migrants in their countries of origin.  

To  counteract  smuggling  of  and  trafficking  in  human  beings,  the  Community  is  supporting 
and  promoting  the  ratification  and  implementation  of  international  instruments,  the  drafting 
and implementation of National Anti-Trafficking Action Plans, legislative improvements, and 
the prevention, reintegration and rehabilitation of victims. The Ouagadougou Action Plan of 
November  2006  (now  a  part  of  the  EU-Africa  Partnership  on  Migration,  Mobility  and 
Employment) has created new cooperation prospects between the European Union and Africa 
in this area.  

Finally, the EU needs to persevere with dialogue and concerted action with partner countries 
in particular regions. 

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Accordingly, the Commission proposes to: 

•  Acquire  and  provide  timely  and  updated  information  on  changes  in  migratory  routes 
towards the EU by promoting reliable comparable data to be collected in both sending and 
destination countries, exploring new scientific methodologies, and making full use of new 
technologies, such as the electronic mapping system. 

•  Provide  assistance  to  key  third  countries  to  strengthen  their  migration  management,  e.g. 
sharing experiences on border control issues, training of border guards and the exchange of 
operational information. 

•  Support third countries in the adoption and implementation of National Integrated Border 

Management Strategies in line with EU standards. 

•  Support  local  organisations  that  operate  to  sensitise  potential  migrants  to  stay  and  help 

them to find opportunities in their home countries. 

•  Intensify,  with  the  active  involvement  of  origin  and  transit  countries,  particularly  in  the 
European Neighbourhood Policy context, joint operations and cooperation in setting up a 
border  surveillance  infrastructure  under  the  European  Border  Surveillance  System 
(EUROSUR). 

•  While  placing  the  readmission  policy  more  firmly  within  the  Global  Approach  and  its 
priorities and using the potential of mobility partnerships, intensify efforts on readmission 
agreements  between  the  EC  and  the  main  countries  of  origin  and  transit;  make  sure  that 
third  countries  meet  their  obligations  to  readmit  persons  staying  illegally  in  the  EU, 
including  where  applicable  under  the  Cotonou  Agreement,  and  the  recognition  of 
documents  facilitating  the  return  of  undocumented  migrants,  as  well  as  offering  the 
necessary  assistance  for  such  readmissions.  Ensure  through  training,  exchange  of  best 
practices and coaching that all return operations are conducted with dignity and in line with 
human  rights  standards,  and  increase  cooperation  to  secure  the  sustainability  of  such 
returns. 

•  Encourage third countries to ratify and implement international instruments related to the 

fight against smuggling and trafficking in human beings. 

•  Strengthen, at the global level, cooperation within international organisations, in particular 

with the United Nations, in fighting human trafficking. 

•  Encourage  due  attention  to  the  human  trafficking  issue  in  the  political  and  cooperation 
dialogue with partner countries and with regional organisations such as the African Union, 
ECOWAS, SADC, ASEAN and ASEM. 

•  Give  priority  to  the  implementation  of  the  Ouagadougou  Action  Plan,  support  regional 
organisations  in  developing  anti-trafficking  strategies  and  action  plans,  and  ensure  that 
existing ones are put into effect. 

2.3.  Migration and development 

There are many ongoing and recent initiatives in the area of migration and development, such 
as initiatives encouraging the positive impact on development from the transfers of migrants' 

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remittances and reducing the cost of remittance transfers. Other initiatives geared to enabling 
members  of  diasporas  to  contribute  to  their  country  of  origin  and  the  temporary  return  of 
highly  qualified  migrants  have  also  been  launched.  They  have  proved  a  success  along  with 
initiatives  concerning  circular  migration  from  a  development  perspective,  and  measures 
targeting brain drain and ethical recruitment, in particular regarding health care professionals. 

The  work  on  migration  and  development  should  now  be  deepened  and  refined.  The 
objectives, principles and organisational aspects of the European Consensus on Development8 
should  be  applied  with  a  view  to  strengthening  EU  efforts  to  address  the  root  causes  of 
migration,  with  a  special  focus  on  employment  issues,  governance  and  demographic 
developments.  

Migration  policies  should  be  incorporated  in  a  structural  manner  into  policies  on  health, 
education and human capital, and into social and economic development strategies. Migration 
and development policies should also focus much more on economic reform and job creation 
and on improving the working conditions and the socio-economic situation in low-income and 
middle-income  countries,  and  in  regions  characterised  by  high  emigration  pressures.  This 
would  include  promoting  access  to  quality  education  for  all,  the  development  and 
improvement of vocational training and the reinforcement of management skills, and further 
developing the role of the formal labour markets.  

The  EU-Africa  Partnership  on  Migration,  Mobility  and  Employment,  established  in  2007, 
now  provides  the  framework  for  this  in  African  countries.  In  other  regions  such  as  Eastern 
Europe  and  Asia,  existing  cooperation  frameworks  and  mobility  partnerships  are  potential 
instruments  for  such  a  focus.  In  parallel  to  a  human  capital  and  employment-focused 
approach,  measures  in  the  areas  of  foreign  direct  investment  and  trade  are  essential. 
Furthermore, the EU should also formulate a policy in response to recent developments such 
as the increasing impact of climate change on migratory movements. 

In view of the above, the Commission proposes to: 

•  Work  towards  efficient,  secure  and  low-cost  remittance  transfers  for  a  broader 

development impact by:  

•  improving statistics and supporting financial sector development, 

•  creating an environment favorable to foreign direct investments in migrant source 
countries,  including  the  productive  investment  of  migrants'  remittances,  and  in 
this  context  work  with  the  financial  sector  to  encourage  mobility  investment 
funds, 

•  encouraging  Member  States,  under  the  Directive  on  Payment  Services,  to  also 
regulate  "one-leg"  transactions  in  which  at  least  one  of  the  payment  service 
providers  is  located  outside  the  EEA  so  that  remittances  can  be  sent  with  more 
transparency and with adequate consumer protection, 

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Joint  statement  by  the  Council  and  the  representatives  of  the  governments  of  the  Member  States 
meeting  within  the  Council,  the  European  Parliament  and  the  Commission  on  European  Union 
Development Policy: 'The European Consensus', 2006/C46/01.  

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•  establishing, in close cooperation with the African Union and the World Bank, a 
remittances institute in Africa and stepping up work on remittances particularly in 
the Western Balkans. 

•  Promote  and  support  initiatives  by  migrant  groups  and  diaspora  organisations  to  get 
involved in EU policy initiatives with and about their countries and regions of origin and 
to:  

•  better tap the human and economic potential of diasporas for the development of 
partner  countries,  through  targeted  initiatives  in  areas  such  as  trade  facilitation, 
investment promotion and transnational networking, 

•  supporting efforts by migrant source countries to reach out to their diasporas, 

•  supporting  diaspora  groups  that  are  engaged  in  development-related  activities  in 

their source countries, 

•  encouraging  initiatives  to  enable  migrants  and  members  of  diasporas  to  access 
business  management  advice,  micro-credit  opportunities  and  support  for  setting 
up SMEs in source countries. 

•  Strengthen the Policy Coherence for Development (PCD) dimension of the migration and 
development nexus in close cooperation with the countries concerned and with particular 
emphasis on the brain drain, by:  

•  acquiring  a  more  in-depth  and  sector-specific  understanding  of  the  current  and 

forecast scale and impact of brain drain,  

•  supporting  the  definition  and  implementation  of  country  specific  'safeguarding 
skills  for  development'  policies,  based  on  training,  retention,  ethical  recruitment 
and return,9  

•  considering  how  best  to  develop  ethical  recruitment  of  health  service  staff  from 

third countries, as part of a green paper on the European health workforce. 

•  Promote  access  to  quality  education  for  all,  the  development  and  improvement  of 
vocational  training  and  the  reinforcement  of  management  skills  and  further  develop  the 
role  of  the  formal  labour  markets  and  decent  working  conditions  in  low-income  and 
middle-income  countries  with  a  view  to  improving  conditions  and  employment 
opportunities in regions characterised by high emigration pressures. 

•  Apply the objectives, principles and organisational aspects of the European Consensus on 
Development  to  strengthen  EU  efforts  to  address  the  root  causes  of  migration,  with  a 
special focus on employment issues, governance and demographic developments.  

•  Explore  the  relationship  between  climate  change  and  migration  and  gain  a  better 

understanding of the number of people affected now and in the future. 

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Commission Staff Working Paper on Policy Coherence for Development - SEC(2008) 434/2. 

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3. 

RELEVANCE OF THE GLOBAL APPROACH IN GEOGRAPHICAL TERMS  

3.1. 

The Southern migratory routes  

The Global Approach focused first on Africa and in particular on Sub-Saharan Africa, taking 
into account all the countries along the Southern migratory routes to the European Union. It 
established new forms of dialogue and cooperation between countries from various regional 
settings, beyond the traditional boundary lines of relations between the European Union and 
these countries.  

At  the  political  level,  an  important  regional  process  was  launched  with  a  ministerial 
conference on migration and development in Rabat in July 2006, setting up a framework for 
comprehensive  action,  followed  by  concrete  initiatives,  workshops  and  a  second  ministerial 
Conference  in  Paris  in  November  2008.  The  Global  Approach  also  inspired  the  Ministerial 
Conference  of  Tripoli  (November  2006),  which,  for  the  first  time,  ushered  in  a  common 
approach  between  the  European  Union  and  the  whole  of  Africa.  The  first  ever  Euromed 
ministerial meeting on migration in Albufeira (November 2007) set priorities in the form of 
concrete cooperation initiatives. The EU-Africa summit in Lisbon (December 2007) translated 
the  common  approach  into  concrete  terms  by the  adoption  of  the  EU-Africa  Partnership  on 
Migration,  Mobility  and  Employment.  At  the  bilateral  level,  the  political  dialogue  on 
migration  was  launched  in  a  series  of  key  countries,  triggered  by  EU  migration  missions 
based  on  Articles  8  and  13  of  the  Cotonou  Agreement.  In  addition,  a  cooperation  platform 
was established with Ethiopia. Finally, the mobility partnership with Cape Verde of June 2008 
(covering  legal  migration,  the  fight  against  irregular  immigration,  and  migration  and 
development),  to  be  followed  by  exploratory  talks  with  Senegal,  should  pave  the  way  for 
extended operational cooperation on migration in this region.  

With  many  initiatives  underway,  coherence  is  now  the  watchword,  both  at  the  level  of 
political  developments  and  implementation.  The  agreed  action  along  the  migratory  routes 
requires  intra-African  cooperation,  especially  between  sub-Saharan  African  countries  and 
North  African  countries.  Organisations  such  as  the  African  Union  and  ECOWAS  need  the 
resources to coordinate such cooperation. Politically sensitive issues like refugee protection, 
visa  facilitation  and  readmission  need  to  be  addressed  in  an  overall,  balanced  context,  and 
there must be progress on all fronts.  

In view of the above, the Commission proposes to:  

•  Ensure  that  all  aspects  of  EU-Africa  cooperation  are  implemented  and  evaluated  at  the 
political level through successive ministerial meetings, with a first follow-up to the Lisbon 
summit in 2010. 

•  Use  the  recently  established  EU  Implementation  Team  on  the  Migration,  Mobility  and 
Employment  Partnership  one  of  as  the  main  vehicles  for  coordinating  operational 
cooperation between the Commission and Member States. 

•  Strengthen  policy  ownership  among  African  countries  by  focusing  on  the  importance  of 
South/South migratory flows and support African countries wishing to develop their own 
migration policy framework. 

•  Promote  triangular  cooperation  (i.e.  cooperation  between  the  Maghreb  and  Sub-Saharan 
African  countries,  with  EU  support),  in  particular  through  initiatives  such  as  developing 

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migration  observatories,  informing  on  legal  migration,  promoting  consular  cooperation, 
cooperation on readmission, border controls and mixed migration flows. 

•  Increase  knowledge  on  remittances  in  Africa  with  the  establishment  of  an  African 
Remittances Institute under the leadership of the African Union and in partnership with the 
World Bank. 

•  Make  more  use  of  bilateral  channels  as  well  as  regional  and  continental  cooperation 
frameworks  such  as  ECOWAS,  the  Euromed  process,  the  Rabat  process  and  the  African 
Union, for stronger result-oriented dialogue and cooperation. 

•  Ensure  systematic  and  operational  follow-up  of  the  joint  migration  missions  and  other 

migration cooperation related to the Cotonou Agreement. 

3.2. 

The Eastern and South-Eastern regions neighbouring the EU 

In  2007,  the  Global  Approach  was  extended  to  the  Eastern  and  South-Eastern  regions 
neighbouring  the  European  Union,  and  to  a  lesser  extent  to  the  Middle  East  and  Asia.  The 
Global  Approach  priorities  for  these  regions  were  in  line  with  earlier  ones,  namely  the 
European  Neighbourhood  policy,  the  Pre-accession  strategy  and  the  Enlargement  process. 
Dialogue  and  cooperation  on  migration  were  already  well  under  way  within  these 
frameworks. In parallel, regional processes like the Budapest and Söderköping processes, and 
regional  organisations  such  as  the  OSCE  and  the  Council  of  Europe  have  also  been  very 
active in this issue area. The Global Approach was able to build on these results.  

The pilot mobility partnership with the Republic of Moldova and the launching of the Black 
Sea cooperation platform are fruits of the Global Approach in this region. Exploratory talks 
with Georgia for a further pilot mobility partnership may also bring important results, paving 
the  way  for  cooperation  with  yet  other  partner  countries.  While  the  security  issues  (border 
control,  fight  against  irregular  immigration,  etc.)  and  now  increasingly  questions  of  legal 
migration,  were  the  main  first  targets  for  cooperation  in  this  region,  the  migration  and 
development dimension too has started to emerge. Indeed, there would be clear added value in 
developing,  with  appropriate  countries,  cooperation  in  the  areas  of  labour  migration 
management,  development-enhancing  remittances,  voluntary  return  and  reintegration  of 
migrants, and diaspora networks.  

Finally,  some  of  the  other  tools  of  the  Global  Approach  to  migration,  such  as  migration 
profiles  and  cooperation  platforms,  are  to  be  applied  in  a  more  systematic  manner  to  the 
Eastern and South-Eastern regions. 

In the light of the above, it would be appropriate to:  

•  Increase the visibility of the Global Approach under the European Neighbourhood Policy 
and the pre-accession strategy by intensifying cooperation with the neighbouring countries 
and making better use of existing structures for dialogue and cooperation . 

•  Seek  more  synergy  between  the  Global  Approach  and  the  other  cooperation  structures, 

especially in relation to Turkey and the countries in the Western Balkans.  

•  Strengthen the presence of the EU in the regional consultative processes, in particular the 
Budapest and Söderköping processes, and regional organisations with a view to promoting 
the Global Approach on a regional scale.  

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•  Ensure  that  existing  migration-related  agreements  are  fully  implemented,  and  seek 
immigration, 

terms  of  border  management, 

irregular 

operational  cooperation 
readmission and return, and human trafficking. 

in 

•  Develop  the  Black  Sea  Cooperation  Platform  and  apply  more  systematically  migration 

profiles and migration missions in the region.  

•  Stress  the  migration  and  development  dimension  by  concrete  initiatives  focusing  on 

circular migration, remittances and diaspora networks.  

3.3. 

Differentiating the approach in dealings with other regions 

Though  a  point  of  reference  in  the  previous  Communication  on  the  Global  Approach,  the 
Southern  Caucasus,  Central  Asia,  the  Middle  East  and  Asia  have  received  only  limited 
attention  under  the  Global  Approach.  However,  the  migration  potential  of  these  regions  (in 
terms  of  irregular  immigration  or  legal  economic  migration  to  the  EU)  cannot  be  ignored, 
requiring  a  more  pragmatic,  differentiated  and  result-oriented  methodology,  using  both  a 
multilateral  and  bilateral  approach.  Furthermore,  countries  like  India,  China,  Vietnam,  Sri 
Lanka and the Philippines, as well as the Middle East are becoming increasingly relevant for 
the EU's migration policy.  

As  regards  Latin  America  and  the  Caribbean,  it  is  important  to  follow  up  the  Lima 
Declaration  from  the  EU-LAC  Summit  in  May  2008  by  developing  a  structured  and 
comprehensive  dialogue  on  migration,  identifying  common  challenges  and  areas  for  mutual 
cooperation and benefiting from the activities of EU-LAC experts. 

In the light of the above, it would be appropriate to: 

•  Use  the  existing  multilateral  structures  between  the  EU  and  Asia,  and  the  ASEM  in 
particular, to deepen the dialogue on migration policies, exchange of experiences and best 
practices and explore possible synergies between the two continents. 

•  Consider broadening the existing dialogue on irregular immigration with China to include 
all migration-related aspects and to establish dialogue with a number of Asian countries, in 
particular India, Vietnam and the Philippines. 

•  Ensure  a  follow-up  to  the  Lima  Declaration  to  deepen  our  mutual  understanding  of  the 
migration challenges and of the migration policies in place, and to strengthen the existing 
collaboration  by  putting  in  place  an  agreed  framework  for  enhanced  cooperation  and 
partnership  between  the  European  Union  and  Latin  America  and  the  Caribbean  on 
migration and mobility policies.  

4. 

THE GLOBAL APPROACH  AS  A  FRAMEWORK  OF  COHERENCE,  COORDINATION  AND 
EFFICIENCY FOR BETTER MIGRATION GOVERNANCE 

The  new  governance  approach  proposed  in  the  June  2008  Communication  on  a  Common 
Immigration Policy for Europe will also have a bearing on the future working methods under 
the  Global  Approach,  which  will  have  to  be  more  coherent,  better  coordinated  and  more 
efficient.  Notably,  regular  analysis  and  evaluation  will  be  needed  in  close  cooperation 
between  Member  States  and  the  Commission  to  feed  into  the  annual  report  to  the  Spring 
European  Council  as  suggested  in  the  June  Communication  and,  probably,  in  the  European 
Immigration Pact. 

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4.1. 

Coordination and coherence 

The  Global  Approach,  with  its  comprehensive  policy  towards  migration,  requires  closer 
coordination  between  the  EU  and  the  national,  regional  and  local  level  and  with  third 
countries,  using  a  range  of  instruments.  Migration  missions,  migration  profiles,  mobility 
partnerships and cooperation platforms have already shown their worth, but instruments like 
these  need  to  be  applied  more  systematically  to  ensure  structural  coordination  and  policy 
coherence.  There  is  a  clear  need  to  enhance  cooperation  between  the  Commission  and  the 
Member States in third countries, and to ensure that efforts are properly coordinated. There is 
also a need to improve and enlarge the evidence base for migration initiatives. Combining all 
the information available to the Commission, Member States, EU agencies and other bodies 
can be helpful in this respect.  

It is also necessary to translate better in concrete and operational terms the political objectives 
of  the  European  Union  as  regards  migration,  in  the  dialogue  and  cooperation  with  third 
countries.  A  genuine  partnership  can  only  be  built  and  maintained  in  case  both  sides  invest 
sufficiently  in  informing  about  their  policy  intentions  and  developments.  The  animated 
discussions accompanying the adoption of the Return Directive in the summer of 2008 are a 
clear reminder of the need for the EU to better communicate its policies.  

Finally, the EU and its Member States should adopt  a higher profile  and  actively engage in 
promoting  the  Global  Approach  in  various  multilateral,  global  and  regional  cooperation 
frameworks such as the Global Forum on Migration and Development (GFMD), that will hold 
its next session in Manila in October and will provide an opportunity for the EU to present a 
coherent and consolidated position, the United Nations and its relevant specialised agencies, 
the  G8,  the  OECD,  the  OSCE,  the  Council  of  Europe,  the  International  Organisation  for 
Migration,  the  World  Bank  and  regional  development  banks,  as  well  as  the  regional 
consultative processes. 

In the light of the above, the Commission proposes to:  

•  Mainstream  and  coordinate  migration  with  other  policy  areas,  including  development, 
foreign  policy,  security,  trade,  environment,  agriculture,  employment,  education,  health, 
research  and  social  affairs,  and  promote  timely  consultation  with  relevant  stakeholders, 
both externally and internally. 

•  Strengthen  regular  interaction  between  the  various  ministries  in  the  Member  States  to 

ensure implementation of the Global Approach. 

•  Enhance  and  upgrade  the  migration  management  capacities  as  part  of  the  core  tasks  of 
Commission  Delegations  and  Member  States’  Embassies,  e.g.  by  setting  up  a  migration 
support mechanism for the exchange of information, expertise and training.  

•  Strengthen capacity building measures in selected source and transit countries of migration 
e.g. by initiating Migration Support Teams, with experts assigned from the Member States 
authorities.  

4.2. 

Efficient use of financial support  

The Global Approach is funded substantially through the available EU financial instruments. 
These  include  the  Aeneas  Programme,  now  superseded  by  the  Thematic  Programme  of 
cooperation with third countries in the areas of migration and asylum, and the Solidarity and 

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Migration  Flows  Programme.  Other  funding  has  come  from  the  geographic  instruments, 
notably the Meda and the Tacis programmes, now replaced by the European Neighbourhood 
and  Partnership  Instrument,  and  the  geographic  instrument  for  Sub-Saharan  Africa,  the 
Caribbean  and  the  Pacific  region,  the  European  Development  Fund,  as  well  as  from  the 
Development  Cooperation  Instrument  for  Asia  and  Latin  America.  The  implementing  rules 
for these latter instruments, however, sometimes limit the extent to which they can be used for 
migration  purposes.  The  Rapid  Reaction  Mechanism,  now  superseded  by  the  Stability 
Instrument, has also been used for supporting some migration initiatives.  

The  complementary  and  timely  mobilisation  of  the  various  EC  funding  sources  remains 
challenging,  and  there  is  a  need  to  consider  how  best  to  combine  these  various  resources  – 
including funding from EU Member State and other outside sources.  

The  way  the  various  Community  instruments  are  used  needs  to  be  improved,  as  does  the 
action taken by the Member States and the Community. The voluntary pooling of resources 
from the Community, the Member States and third countries in line with the proposals in the 
Communication on A Common Immigration Policy for Europe, should be encouraged. 

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In sum, making the Global Approach more efficient depends partly on the method and remit 
of  financing,  and  will  make  greater  demands  on  the  human  resources.  This  will  call  for 
improved coordination among all stakeholders, and more efficient and regular monitoring and 
evaluation.In the light of the above, the Commission proposes to:  

•  Set  up  mechanisms  for  coordinating  and,  possibly,  pooling  the  resources  of  Member 

States, Community and third countries to serve Global Approach priorities. 

•  Evaluate the efficiency of the current EC financial instruments in terms of their ability to 

deliver the objectives of the Global Approach to migration.  

5. 

CONCLUSIONS  

Under  the  Global  Approach,  the  European  Union  is  developing  an  innovative  way  of 
addressing  migration  issues  in  all  their  complexity.  Though  still  in  its  infancy,  it  is  an 
approach  which  has  already  generated  the  necessary  political  impetus  and  has  raised  the 
profile of the external dimension of the European migration policy. It has been inclusive and 
comprehensive  also  in  the  sense  that  it  was  quickly  expanded  in  thematic  and  geographical 
terms.  

This  Communication  builds  on  the  principles  suggested  in  the  recent  Communication  on  A 
Common Immigration Policy for Europe and provides the first building blocks for the actions 
thereof proposed, which should also be taken on board of the European Pact on Immigration 
and Asylum. 

The analysis in this Communication deals with the Global Approach in both geographical and 
thematic terms. However, it is now necessary to refine the approach so that it reflects better 
the strategic migration objectives of the EU; that it takes into account the specificities of the 
regions and countries; and that it helps us to manage more effectively the new and evolving 
challenges and opportunities set by migration. 

This can only be achieved by increasing coordination and synergies between the Commission, 
the  Member  States  and  the  third  countries  concerned,  to  achieve  greater  effectiveness  and 
more coherence in the practical application of the Global Approach.  

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