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August 24, 2023
The EU should use its diaspora policies to step up pressure on third countries to cooperate in controlling migration, the Spanish Council Presidency suggested, by “integrating discussions on diaspora relations into bilateral relations on migration with partner countries”.
Picture: Focal photo, CC BY-NC 2.0
In a document (pdf) which bears the noble title of “The diaspora as an agent of development – remittances and beyond”, the Spanish presidency asks some direct questions:
“How can we integrate diaspora investments and remittances into bilateral relations with partner countries, using their potential as an incentive to deepen migration cooperation with the EU?
“What role could diasporas play in facilitating returns? How to involve diasporas in certain aspects of voluntary return?
The document is written in the language of development and pays particular attention to the issue of remittances from diaspora populations to third states, which “constituted the largest source of capital inflows to low-income countries and intermediate in 2022, ahead of foreigners.” direct investment and aid. Their importance is increasing.
The aim of reducing the cost of sending remittances, particularly to Africa, is highlighted in the document, but it laments that “the lack of standardized regulations between EU member states further contributes to the divergence of costs of remittances, hindering the potential for a more inclusive and inclusive policy.” affordable financial ecosystem for all within the bloc.
However, the document also notes that in recent years, “several institutions” have moved “away from the traditional focus on remittances to emphasize the benefits that can be achieved through engagement active in the diaspora”.
In this vision, “the diaspora begins to be seen as a “collective action”, whose members can contribute directly to investments and act as agents of development. »
The document notes that:
“The actions of Diaspora Investment Promotion Agencies (APIs) are beginning to play a major role in this regard, promoting a range of activities such as: creating marketing materials for their diaspora to invest, raising awareness and raising awareness through cooperation with the diaspora. organizations, network in host countries through events and social gatherings, meetings with diaspora-owned businesses in host countries or engage diaspora members working in large multinational companies to gain information on key contacts. Additionally, a growing number of migrant-sending countries are seeking to raise funds from their diaspora through diaspora bonds, issuing bonds at a premium favorable to their diaspora, thereby generating a flow of funds while creating a process that keeps the diaspora strongly engaged in their home country. countries. The EU, with its resources and know-how, has the potential to contribute to this work.”
The EU may have the “potential to help”, but the document says the issue of diaspora involvement as a means of development in itself may well take second place to development as an instrument for reducing poverty. migration to the EU.
At one point, the paper highlights that “diaspora investments for climate adaptation in rural communities are enormous but still underexploited, as they could help mitigate the cycle of climate-induced forced migration.”
It should be noted that the document has been distributed to the Council Working Party on External Aspects of Asylum and Migration (EMWP) and that its processing codes (MIGR, JAI, ASIM, RELEX) refer to the migration, justice and home affairs, asylum and external relations. – not development, trade or aid.
The newspaper goes on to say:
“Remittances, along with other forms of diaspora investment and engagement, provide a critical source of income for migrants’ countries of origin. This is why so many partner countries have a strong interest in legal migration, which often supports their economies and GDP. Working on legal migration pathways should therefore go hand in hand with increased EU support to maximize the impact that the diaspora can have. This support, if used well and implemented consistently, also has the promise of becoming a significant incentive to deepen cooperation on migration more broadly between partner countries, as well as on issues of specific interest to the EU.”
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Further reading
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