Refugees and migrants to provide support in the medical and agricultural sectors amid COVID-19 labour shortages
27 Apr 2020

Refugees and migrants to provide support in the medical and agricultural sectors amid COVID-19 labour shortages

by | posted in: Belgium, COVID-19, European Union, Germany, Italy, Refugees in the EU | 0

As many European countries continue to struggle with the unprecedented COVID-19 crisis, the Council of Europe and the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) encourage member states to benefit from the support refugee and migrant health professionals can provide to national health systems at this critical juncture. In addition, the lack of agricultural workforce due to the closure of borders to seasonal workers remains a potential threat to the entire European food supply chain, according to the European Commission. As a solution, countries like Germany, Italy, UK, Belgium and Ireland are exploring the opportunities for granted working permits. This article gives a brief look into the different solutions and remaining challenges.

Difficulties within the EU-Africa relationship
12 Mar 2020

Difficulties within the EU-Africa relationship

by | posted in: African Union, Cotonou agreement, ECRE, European Union | 0

The recent developments between the EU and Turkey have highlighted how easily migration partnerships, or ‘deals’, can lead to breakdown which can have far-reaching consequences. The decision to extend the post-cotonou agreement to allow extra time for negotiations and the recent working paper released by the European Council on Refugees and Exiles (ECRE) show the difficulties – especially on the issue of migration – in the relationship between two other partners, namely the European Union (EU) and the African Union.

The European Union is questioned over the Eritrean road project
21 Feb 2020

The European Union is questioned over the Eritrean road project

by | posted in: Africa, Eritrea, EU funding, European Commission, European Parliament, European Union, Forced labour, United Nations | 0

The legality of the road building project in Eritrea funded by European Union (EU) under the EU Emergency Trust Fund for Africa has been questioned on the territory of the European institutions over the past week. On 14 February, the European Commission Directorate General on International Cooperation and Development (DG DEVCO) held a Round Table meeting with several NGOs and on 18 February, the Committee on Development (DEVE) of the European Parliament dedicated a part of its agenda to the EU development aid in Eritrea. During both events representatives of the European Commission, civil society as well as members of the parliament were presenting their points of view.