ACADEMY IN INTEGRATION STRATEGIES - URBAN ACADEMY

INTRODUCTION

The Urban Academy on Integration strategies has the objective to support learning and sharing of experiences between practitioners and policy makers working on integration at the local, regional and national level, with a focus on cities.

The Academy has the objective to support learning and sharing of experiences between practitioners and policy makers working on integration at the local, regional and national level, with a focus on cities. It also provides the opportunity to create networks of peers working on similar integration issues across Europe, which can provide advice and support beyond the Academy itself. It is facilitated and organised as a mix of experts’ input as well as peer exchanges on individual policy dilemmas and professional challenges between the participants. Much space is dedicated to discuss and try to find together innovative solutions for the challenges participants face in their city, region or country in the field of integration.

OUTCOME 1 - 1ST URBAN ACADEMY (APRIL 2018)

The first edition of the Academy took place in Brussels in April 2018 and was a great success. In the evaluation survey, 97% of the respondents stated that the event should take place annually and that they would consider applying again.

The two-day programme featured a field visit to integration projects in Mechelen, Belgium, and provided plenty of room for dilemma-based exchange between the participants in their respective fields of work. Participants got together with members of the European Integration Network and with several experts including from the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Education, Youth, Sport and Culture, Migration Policy Group and the Migration Policy Institute Europe. Migration Work facilitated the event and its two core modules - education in relation to integration and working effectively with civil society.

Note: The event was organised by the Directorate-General for Migration and Home Affairs. The Joint Research Centre contributed to the Academy by developing an academic reader on the two topics of the Academy and providing rapporteurs for the sessions. The ambition is to make the Urban Academy an annual event covering different challenges concerning the inclusion of migrants and refugees.

Main Findings and Recommendations:

Participants were very positive about the Academy. 97% of the participants said that the event should take place annually and would consider applying again. There are, however, some recommendations that can be made for the overall guidance of the participants:

• One recommendation is to continue the support of the participants throughout the year. DG Home could, for example, set up an online workspace or bulletin board. This way, participants stay connected and can continue to exchange information and best practices.

• Another way of supporting the network is by organising a webinar in 6 months’ time to discuss the progress participants made.

• It could also be interesting to divide the participants into smaller session

• Working groups that can continue to support each other in the long run.

OUTCOME 2 - 2ND URBAN ACADEMY (MAY 2019)

The second Urban Academy on integration took place on 21-22 May in Antwerp, Belgium. It gathered more than 60 participants from European cities, regions and national governments to discuss how to improve migrants’ integration into the labour market and make housing policies more inclusive.

Participants discussed common challenges such as discrimination on the labour and housing market, difficulties in validation of skills and in engaging local employers and looked together for possible solutions. They also visited the agency of the city of Antwerp providing integrated services to newcomers and an innovative co-housing project between unaccompanied minors and young people from Antwerp.

Main Findings and Recommendations:

The second academy confirmed the usefulness of supporting exchanges on concrete integration issues between cities, regions and national authorities. Some of the solutions proposed regard the need to involve all key actors when designing and implementing integration policies, the importance of linking housing policies with other integration services and the value of involving private actors such as employers.

OUTCOME 2 - FULL REPORT CREATED

A report on Financial Blending for Cities was conducted by EIB and ECORYS. Multiple interviews were conducted in 17 Cities across the EU. Below is a summary of some of the findings:

Cities welcoming refugees and migrants: General challenges and needs
As an overarching challenge, many interviewed cities reported a need for political will and political commitment towards the reception and integration of migrants and refugees. Cities also highlighted the importance of working within clear policy contexts on immigration, including clearly outlined financial means and guidelines. Similarly, a number of interviewed cities reported the need for a more human-centred approach in comparison to the current system of integration and perception of migrants and refugees. At a more practical level, interviewed cities reported a number of specific challenges with: 

• Housing -  Providing adequate and affordable housing for migrants

• Employment - Enabling migrants and refugees access to the job market.

• Health and well-being

• Integration activities

• Capacity building cities - human resources and funding-related knowledge expertise is perceived as a fundamental element.

Cities suggestions to improve access to funding
Cities underlined several aspects of the current financing system that impair the securing of the funding necessary for projects targeting the inclusion of migrants and refugees. Based on the interviews, below a set of recommendations on how to address such shortcomings is outlined:

• Ensure direct access to funding

• Involve cities and target groups in decision-making procedures on funding

• Increase flexibility in funding allocation and use

• Consider ad-hoc investments in key areas 

• Simplify administrative requirements to access funds

• Cover administrative expenses

• Coordination across stakeholders

• Provision of other (non-financial) public sector support

THE FUTURE

After the huge success of both events, it’s now been decided that the Urban Academy will become an annual event organised by DG Migration and Home Affairs of the EU Commission.