WELCOME to our first quarterly migration newsletter of 2014, keeping you up-to-date on our migration activities, events and publications at UNU-MERIT and the Maastricht Graduate School of Governance. This month we also congratulate one of our professors, Khalid Koser, on being awarded an MBE by Queen Elizabeth II in the Queen’s New Year's Honours List 'for services to refugees and asylum seekers'. | ||
TRAINING PROGRAMMES |
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Application still open for Migration Management Diploma Programme 2014 We are still accepting applications for the Migration Management Diploma Programme (MMDP), which starts on 1 April 2014. Sponsored by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, we offer 10 scholarships per year to government officials from 40 developing countries with at least three years’ experience in the field of migration and/or asylum. You can download the brochure and apply for the programme here. Watch testimonials from past participants. The application deadline is 31 January 2014. |
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Online Courses For those who are interested but do not have the time to take a full time course, UNU-MERIT and its School of Governance have specially designed a number of online courses to suit the needs of busy professionals interested in learning more about migration studies. Currently we have three courses that can be started at any time: 1) Introduction to Migration Studies; 2) Migration and Remittance Effects; and 3) Comparative Migration Policy. Keep your eye on our website for the launch of a new online course on Forced Migration by Khalid Koser later in 2014. |
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PROJECT ANNOUNCEMENTS |
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Urban Displaced Youth in Kabul With the impending withdrawal of international troops in 2014, Afghanistan is currently a country in transition. Over 40% of the population is under 15 years and almost two-thirds under 25, leading to a ‘youth bulge’. The Migration team at UNU-MERIT and its School of Governance along with COMPAS at Oxford University are currently assisting Samuel Hall in the analysis of data collected from 2000 young people in the capital city Kabul in the fall of 2013. The study aims to understand the determinants of wellbeing for urban displaced youth, identify how wellbeing may influence migration decisions and understand the role that the youth of Afghanistan may play in stabilizing – or destabilizing – the country. |
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A Global Partnership for Development: Factoring in Migration At the High Level Dialogue in New York on 2-3 October 2013, there was overwhelming support for including migration in the Post-2015 Development Agenda. This is the rationale behind a background paper commissioned by the International Organisation for Migration and currently being prepared by UNU-MERIT and its School of Governance. The report will synthesize current evidence regarding migration’s relevance to and impact on the achievement of the MDGs and consider how migration can be factored into the Post 2015 Development Agenda through a revamped renegotiated version of MDG 8 on global partnerships. |
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Returning Experts UNU-MERIT and its School of Governance are working with the German Development Cooperation (GIZ) and the Centre for International Migration and Development (CIM) on a short-term evaluation of the Migration and Development Programme Returning Experts Component. The Returning Experts offers support to migrants in Germany wishing to return to their country of origin and work in a development related capacity. This project will examine the role of the returning experts in transferring knowledge to the country of origin. Fieldwork will take place in three countries over the coming months. |
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Decent Work Across Borders Elaine McGregor from UNU-MERIT and its School of Governance was awarded the contract to perform the mid-term evaluation of the ILO’s Decent Work Across Borders project: A Pilot project for Migrant Health Professionals and Skilled Workers. Funded by the European Union, the project, started in 2011 and is running activities in the Philippines, India and Vietnam. The overall objective of the project is to monitor the circular migration of professionals and highly skilled personnel in the health care sector through the development of specialized employment services and a system of skills testing. |
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UPCOMING EVENTS |
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IS Academy Final Conference We are still accepting registrations for our IS Academy: Migration and Development final conference which will be held on 22-24 January 2014 in Maastricht. The conference marks the end of a five-year project financed by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs. We will be running sessions on the thematic areas covered by the project: (1) return migration; (2) remittances; (3) and the highly-skilled in Afghanistan, Burundi, Ethiopia, Morocco and the Netherlands. Registration for non-speaking participants will close on 15January. Please find more information here. |
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MACIMIDE Kick-Off Conference On 4 April 2014, the Maastricht Centre for Citizenship, Migration and Development (MACIMIDE) will hold its first conference in cooperation with the Dutch Association for Migration Research (DAMR). The conference will be organised in four sessions along the MACIMIDE Research Themes: (1) Migration and Development; (2) Transnational Families; (3) Cross-border Mobility; and (4) Citizenship and Immigrant Incorporation. A detailed programme will be announced in January 2014. For more information please contact Costica Dumbrava. |
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PAST EVENTS |
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Civil Society Days targeted at Diaspora Organizations In the run-up to the IS Academy final conference, we ran two dissemination events targeted at diaspora organizations in the Netherlands. We held dedicated sessions to disseminate the findings for each of the four countries covered in the study – Afghanistan, Burundi, Ethiopia and Morocco - as well as a session devoted to looking at the results of the surveys with these migrant groups in the Netherlands. The event took place in The Hague, the Netherlands on 25-26 November 2013. |
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Policy Debate: Migration in the Post-2015 Development Agenda How does migration enable development through migrants’ economic and social transfers and how should migration be incorporated into the Post-2015 Development Agenda? These were some of the questions asked at the International Policy Debate held at the ILO in Geneva on 21-22 November 2013 as part of the IS Academy Migration and Development: A World in Motion project. The event brought together country representatives, policymakers, practitioners, international organizations and academics to reflect on the broader migration and development dialogue context. A policy brief discussing the key aspects of the debate has been released. |
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Policy Debate: Migration, Stockholm, and Beyond Several members of the Migration Group were recently involved in a debate organized by the Migration Policy Department of the Ministry of Security and Justice in the Netherlands. The event, held on 9-10 December 2013, brought together international policymakers and academics in one place for two days to discuss issues on migration policymaking and the post Stockholm programme. The group discussed topics such as irregular migration, EU citizens (Legal Residents), return policy, migration and development and integration policy. |
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Other Events Katie Kuschminder gave a keynote speech on the Consequences of Return Policies for migrants, countries of origin and EU member states to the General Directors' Immigration Services Conference Return Conference in Zurich in October and was also a discussant for the launch of the IOM World Migration Report on 3 December 2013. Katie was also a key expert for the EUROMED Migration III Migration Profiles Workshop in Liège in November and, alongside Vivianne van de Vorst, a key expert and coordinator for the EUROMED Migration III Workshop on "Transfer of Knowledge and Skills" in Madrid on 10-13 December. |
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Migration Seminars Our Migration Seminar Series kicks off on 15 January 2014 with a presentation from PhD fellow Irina Burlacu. The series provides a platform to present new research findings and have discussions on topics relevant to migration studies. To join our mailing list and receive invitations to future seminars please email: katie.kuschminder@maastrichtuniversity.nl. Migration will also be covered as part of the UNU-MERIT Policy Seminar Series starting with a discussion of the place for migration in the Post-2015 Development Agenda by Ronald Skeldon on 9 January. Upcoming Seminars
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PUBLICATIONS
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Age of Migration In December 2013, the fifth edition of Age of Migration, a leading text in the field of migration was published, co-authored by one of our professors, Hein de Haas. The book provides a comprehensive assessment of the nature, extent and dimensions of international population movements and of their consequences. Thoroughly revised and updated, the 5th edition uses the latest statistical data on migratory flows and migrant populations, assesses the impact of the global economic crisis for migration, includes new material on climate change and migration and features improved analysis of key issues and topics, such as the relationship between migration and development, and migration and security. |
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Working Papers From papers on ethnic segregation (2013-061, 2013-064) and mobility decisions (2013-066, 2013-067) to the role of social media in migration research (2013-068), the place for migration in the Post-2015 Development Agenda (2013-065), and the relationship between transnationalism and integration (2013-071), the migration group has been actively publishing working papers intended to disseminate preliminary results of research carried out at UNU-MERIT and MGSoG to stimulate discussion on a wide range of issues.
Journal Articles
Book Chapters
Project Reports |
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Photo Sources : O. Bilgili, Flickr / albertogp123; Jeroen Toet; Herman Pijpers | ||
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