News

Istanbul: Fifteen employees, including three women, from different departments of the Ministry of Refugees and Repatriations, as well as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan successfully completed a ten day Training of Trainers (ToT) course on migration in the framework of the Silk Routes Partnership project.

Tehran: The 8th Silk Routes Region Working Group Meeting and the final regional training of the Silk Routes Partnership Project provided the first opportunity for countries of origin, transit and destination along the Silk Routes to meet in the light of the 2015 events. The meetings were hosted by the Islamic Republic of Iran at the premises of the Institute for Political and International Studies.

Islamabad / Lahore: In collaboration with ILO, the Silk Routes Partnership project established - as one main pilot initiative - two Migrant Resource Centres (MRCs) in Islamabad and Lahore. The centres provide information and capacity building to potential migrants in Pakistan on rights, legal practices, jobs and protection possibilities abroad as well as on the dangers and consequences of irregular migration.

Vienna: In the field of migration policy “migration dialogues” are an important cooperation tool. They help states to maintain open channels of communication between each other, from expert to ministerial level. Countries along the Silk Routes connect through the Budapest Process.

Vienna: Check out the new Budapest Process Newsletter. It is a joint newsletter of the Budapest Process Secretariat and the flagship project “Support to the Silk Routes Partnership for Migration under the Budapest Process”.

                                                                                     

Iraq, 19-22 September 2015: This second four-day training session held on 19–22 September within the Silk Routes Partnership Project, continues to lay important ground work for developing a comprehensive migration policy and data management framework in Iraq. Iraqi authorities worked jointly on identifying priorities in the field of migration management and missing policy tools with view to the current migration movements within the country and the existing legal framework.

Islamabad, 14-18 September 2015: Islamabad, 14-18 September 2015: The capacity of Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to train new investigators and operational staff in anti-trafficking in human beings and border management processes was enhanced during a five day workshop held from 14 - 18 September in Islamabad.

The FIA is the law enforcement authority in Pakistan responsible for investigating and preventing human trafficking and migrant smuggling, as well as other immigration and organised crime issues.

Islamabad, 8-9 June 2015: Irregular migration has been a priority topic for the participating countries of the Budapest Process since the adoption of the Istanbul Ministerial Declaration on the Silk Routes Partnership for Migration in April 2013. 

The 6th Silk Routes Working Group meeting, hosted by Pakistan from 8 - 9 June 2015 in Islamabad, dedicated two days to discuss best practices, exchange information and debate how to effectively prevent and counteract criminal networks accountable for irregular migration as well as on how to facilitate the return of irregular migrants.

Sofia, 17-18 March 2015: In many countries today, migration management is affected by different types of crisis - be it economic, environmental or security related. Seeing the urgent need of countries to exchange experiences and good practices on this topic, especially in the Black Sea and Silk Routes countries, the Bulgarian Ministry of Interior, as the Chair of the Working Group on the Black Sea region, organised this Working Group meeting in cooperation with Turkey, Hungary, ICMPD, and the Hanns Seidel Foundation on 17-18 March 2015.

During a three day study visit to Georgia, government officials from Afghanistan and Iraq visited over 11 government and non-governmental institutions involved in Georgia’s migration management apparatus. Organised by the Secretariat of the State Commission for Migration Issues (SCMI), the Silk Routes partners had the chance to draw ideas from Georgia’s development in the area of inter-agency cooperation, led by the SCMI, development of legislation, policy and action plans, management of IDPs, refugees, returnees and victims of trafficking and international cooperation, especially regarding the process of visa liberalisation with the European Union.

Kabul, 14-17 March 2014: During a four day workshop held on 14-17 March 2014 in Kabul, ICMPD as implementing partner of the project “Support to the Silk Routes Partnership for Migration under the Budapest Process”, supported representatives of seven government institutions in strengthening national migration policy and data management systems through an inter-agency approach.

Islamabad, 24-27 February 2015: Continuing the ongoing support to the Government of Pakistan under the project “Support to the Silk Routes Partnership for Migration under the Budapest Process” through regional and national activities, these national trainings held in Islamabad on 24 - 27 February 2015 focused on technical and applicable practices. Policy and operational level experts as well as project focal points from the Government of Pakistan, especially the Ministry of Interior, the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development and their concerned departments were invited.

Starting with the first Regional Training on Migration Policy Development and Migration Data Management held in Turkey in the beginning of September 2014, a sequence of workshops, trainings and meetings within the framework of the project Support to the Silk Routes Partnership were carried out in Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Turkey throughout the second half of 2014.