BSPC on migration and integration

Stockholm, March 2019BSPC Working Groupon Migration and IntegrationKaliningrad, 28-29 March 2019Bernd HemingwayDeputy Director GeneralPermanent Secretariat of the Council of the Baltic Sea StatesCheck against deliveryDear Members of the BSPC Working Group on Migration and Integration,I would like to thank you for the kind invitation. It is a privilege and honour to speak in front of this distinguished group for the second time.I would like to use my time here to focus on three points:Firstly, to inform you about recent migratory trends in our region. Secondly, I want to discuss the nexus between the demographic factor our ageing population and migration. My third point will focus on conclusions and recommendations, where does the Baltic Sea Region need the support of Parliamentarians.Let me start with some of the trends.Net migration into the Baltic Sea Region is increasing and is now the largest component of population change. As we are all aware, in 2015 one of the largest influxes of refugees, the region had ever experienced, took place.Even though the influx decreased significantly during the following years the concerned Baltic Sea Member States are still working hard to integrate those who have a right to stay. There is, however, an increasing debate about return of those who have no right to stay.Other countries in the region have not experienced this influx but are mainly concerned about a high emigration factor. As an example, there were around 10 million Russian emigrants living abroad in 2015.At the same time Russia hosted over 11.6 million migrants. Similar trends can be seen in Poland and the Baltic States, where emigration and the connected brain drain plays an important role in the political discussion.Considering the current migration situation, the need for integration of migrants is specifically highlighted by the political leadership of the CBSS. It is important to enhance dialogue and cooperation between all levels of governance (national, regional and local) and civil society organisations, business and academia, with the focus put on identifying and disseminating best practices and lessons learned regarding effective migration management and implementation of integration policy.Let me high-light three basic factors important for a successful integration:A) Labour and the possibility to provide for your own means of living,B) Language skills,C) Social aspects like education but also health care.Let me add a fourth one, the welcoming culture of the host society.Migration and security plays still an important role in the public and political debate.A very important and even trend setting role playing traditional and social media.Often the media coverage of migration has been more negative than positive; this is particularly so for irregular migration.It should be noted however, that negativity is not unique to migration coverage, as journalists generally tend to emphasize problems across most topics.In addition to affecting what the public thinks about migration, media can also influence the agendas of policymakers.It is important to understand the different levels of communication between a very emotional “anti-migrant” use of language and the more factual explanatory language used by those trying to explain the positive aspects of migration.The use of non-discriminatory language is in particular for law makers and politicians very important.Let me get to my second point, the nexus between the demography of our ageing population and migration.I would like to state from the very beginning that I don’t consider migration the one and only answer to our challenges, but, it is one of several policy tools to be considered.We experience in nearly all the countries of the Baltic Sea Region a declining birth rate at the same time as people get older.We also experience in some countries a high number of emigrations, which leads to a negative net migration.This will have a number of consequences.A short fall of skilled workers is already visible today and the situation will worsen when the “baby boomers” of the late 50th and early 60th will enter retirement age soon.The ageing population also shows another consequence, namely the growing need of care givers.A recent study by the university of Mainz states that only in Germany 150,000 care givers with a migratory background work in an irregular situation.Mostly women from Eastern Europe without paying taxes, without participating in any social security system.The study continues that the families have not enough money for a regular employment and that the black market is a carrying pillar of the care taking system.Dear members of parliament,Let me come to my third concluding point in which I would like to discuss some recommendations for the above-mentioned challenges.Let me start with labour migration.Very often the local population fears to lose their jobs when migrants come.Especially in the field of highly skilled workers the opposite is the case.Highly skilled migrant workers create jobs as they need services from dry cleaning to banking.It is important to be attractive for labour migrants.The competition between different labour markets is high and labour migrants assess the migratory conditions when taking a decision where to go...migration is a family decision.Another obstacle for highly skilled workers is very often the recognition of their diplomas. Here, practical solutions need to be found.For those countries dealing with emigration challenges I recommend considering how to keep in contact with their so-called Diaspora, nationals who moved abroad.In many cases migration is circular, and Ireland has shown in the past how keeping in contact helps the country and the individual.Remittances coming back to the country of origin can have a positive impact on the quality of life and if properly used can provide additional means for educating the next generation at home.With regards to the demographic factor, I would like to refer to elaborations I made about labour migration above.It is also important to create systems in which the care for elderly is affordable.It is unacceptable that care givers have to work without any social security, sometimes even with salaries far below the minimum salary.There are systems in place (like in Belgium) that make it attractive to have affordable care giving work in place.Apart from many other policies having an impact on the demographic factor...and the functioning of the social and pension systems, well planed migration policies can be one of the solutions.Last but certainly not least I would like to provide some policy recommendations in the field of integration.Clear indicators for a successful integration policy are the work participation of migrants, their participation in the social and health system and their knowledge of the local language.Two areas members of parliament could look into is the high level of early school leaving of migrant children. The second area being the access to health care. Politics can help making health systems culturally and linguistically sensitive to address the communication barrier.Integration takes place locally and therefore I welcome all the efforts the UBC does in this respect to exchange local best practices.Also, media plays an important role in the perception of migration and therefore in creating a good climate for integration. Media, when criticised, often refers to the freedom of press, but everybody else including politicians can have an opinion and comment on the use of xenophobic or discriminating language.Migration does and will play an important role in local, regional and international politics. Many countries, especially those who have not been exposed to migratory flows, fail to have the infrastructure for a modern migration policy in place. To this end capacity building, the exchange of best practices and also working groups like this are the tools we need.Thank you very much for your attention.