ICMPD Silk Routes

🤝 Supporting migrants and returnees takes coordination, commitment, and the right partnerships

📌 The 5th Steering Committee Meeting of the Nordic Cooperation on Return and Reintegration in Iraq (NORAQ) framework convened in Vienna, Austria on 18 May 2026. The meeting gathered representatives from the NORAQ member states -Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden - alongside ICMPD and the Rwanga Foundation, providing an opportunity to take stock of project activities implemented to date and discuss coordination efforts on the ground.

Across NORAQ's portfolio, progress is tangible.
⏩ Migrant Resource Centres (MRCs) in Baghdad, Erbil, and Sulaymaniyah continue to provide counselling, skills development support, and reintegration services to returnees and potential migrants alike.

⏩ On the ground, partnerships with local institutions in Federal Iraq and Kurdistan Region of Iraq are deepening - from structured case management and job matching to capacity building and rights-based border management.

💬During the meeting, participants had the opportunity to exchange with the Director General of ICMPD, Dr. Susanne Raab, who applauded the NORAQ framework and expressed hopes to maintain and further expand it. The group also reviewed the upcoming project pipeline and held strategic discussions on the future direction of the framework.

✅ NORAQ is a testament to what coordinated, multi-stakeholder engagement can achieve.
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🤝 Sustainable progress against human trafficking depends on coordinated national action, grounded in evidence and owned by institutions.

📢 On 13 May 2026, ICMPD and the Central Committee to Combat Human Trafficking in Iraq convened a workshop in Baghdad to review the National Strategy to Combat Human Trafficking in Iraq (2023-2026) and initiate the development of the next strategic cycle (2027-2030).

📌 Bringing together members of the Central Committee and key anti-trafficking stakeholders, the workshop held structured discussions across four pillars:
-Prevention of trafficking in persons
-Protection and assistance to victims
-Prosecution of traffickers
-National, regional, and international cooperation

📌 Two emerging priorities took centre stage for the next Strategy: the exploitation of digital platforms and social media in recruitment and control of victims and the integration of financial investigations into the anti-trafficking response.

📌 The workshop concluded with facilitated sessions to define strategic direction, thematic priorities and actionable commitments, ensuring the next National Strategy builds on what works while staying responsive to evolving challenges.

🌐 The workshop also contributed to upholding the Ministerial Declaration and its accompanying Call for Action 2025-2030, specifically Priority Goal 1 on strengthening law enforcement cooperation to combat trafficking in human beings, through national strategy development and reinforced institutional coordination.

🤝 The workshop was held under the "Capacity Partnerships and Access to Information for Sustainable Reintegration of Returnees in Iraq project, funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Denmark.

🔗 Read more about CAIR III project: https://lnkd.in/eSQtVYZj
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📢 On Tuesday 28th April 2026, the Federal Investigation Agency welcomed a senior delegation at Islamabad International Airport, led by Mr. Peteris Ustubs, Director (Asia Pacific), Directorate General for International Partnerships (DG INTPA), accompanied by H.E. Mr. Raimundas Karoblis, Ambassador of the European Union in Pakistan, and other officials from the EUD, FRONTEX and International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD).

👥 The delegation was received by Ms. Maham Khan, Deputy Director Immigration, Islamabad International Airport, who briefed the visitors on Federal Investigation Agency, Pakistan - FIA Immigration's departure and arrival operations, the functioning of the Second Line of border control, and the procedures in place for the dignified handling of returnees upon arrival in Pakistan.

🗨️ The delegation thereafter called upon Mr. Syed Aftab Gillani, Chief Executive Officer, Islamabad International Airport, who provided a comprehensive overview of overall airport operations.

📍 Such operations included the ICMPD and Overseas Pakistanis Foundation (OPF) joint initiative of established Airport Reception Desk (ARD), which provides information and access to immediate services to those returning to Pakistan from abroad. The delegation was received by Migrant Resource Centre (MRC) Coordinator and Counsellors , overseeing the ARD, who gave an overview of the operational procedures, coordination mechanisms and the provision of immediate assistance and referrals to ICMPD’s mid-long term reintegration services available under Sustainable Reintegration of Returnee and Improved Migration Management in Pakistan, RoR project funded by European Union.

✅ The visiting delegation appreciated the measures undertaken by the Government of Pakistan and the FIA in curbing irregular migration, while at the same time ensuring smooth and convenient travel for bonafide passengers. The visit also reaffirmed the EU and ICMPD’s commitment to strengthening dignified and sustainable reintegration support for returnees.

🤝 These activities are organised as part of both the ‘Risk Analysis in Pakistan – Phase II’ (RAPAK II) (within the framework of the Migration Partnership Facility) and ‘Sustainable Reintegration of Returnees and Improved Migration Management in Pakistan’ (RoR) projects, part of broader support of the European Union, in partnership with ICMPD, to Pakistan’s migration and border management efforts.

💡The RoR project links with the already established network of MRCs in Islamabad, Lahore and Peshawar. The concept of MRC paired with government capacity building in many migration-related areas, including return and reintegration, has been established and developed in Pakistan and numerous countries in Central Asia and the Silk Routes region.

🔗 More information about the RAPAK II project can be found here: https://shorturl.at/K8iyz

🔗 More information about the RoR project can be found here: https://shorturl.at/Ja58I

🌙 Eid Mubarak 🌙
ICMPD Silk Routes extends its warmest wishes to all those celebrating Eid Al-Fitr.

🌍 The Budapest Process Reference Group met on 4 March for its 13th meeting since 2021.

🇹🇷 🇭🇺 🇸🇪 Under the leadership of Sweden as Rapporteur of the Reference Group with Türkiye as Chair, and Hungary as Co-Chair, the Reference Group reviews progress under the Three Thematic Working Groups and guides the Dialogue’s work for the year ahead.

⏩ Five years since its inception, the Reference Group has been instrumental in the successful negotiations of the 7th Ministerial Declaration and Action Plan and in supporting further operationalisation of the Thematic Working Groups on Law Enforcement Cooperation, Return and Reintegration as well as Legal Pathways for Migration.

🔗 Learn more at: https://www.budapestprocess.org/budapest-process-reference-group-advances-2026-work-plan-and-strategic-follow-up/
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Budapest Process Reference Group advances 2026 Work Plan and strategic follow-up - Budapest Process The Reference Group of the Budapest Process met on 4 March for the 13th time since its establishment in 2021. 5 years after its inception, it is a timely moment to reflect on the Reference Group’s main aims and achievements to date. How does the Reference Group supports the Budapest Process? Withi...

🌙 Ramadan Mubarak🌙 from ICMPD Silk Routes to all who observe

🔴 Live today: Launch of the EU Legal Gateway Office in India
A “one-stop hub” offering guidance on legal pathways to the European Union, supporting students, researchers and ICT professionals exploring opportunities abroad.

📅 18 February 2026 | 12:30 CET

▶️ Watch live:

LAUNCH OF THE EUROPEAN LEGAL GATEWAY OFFICE INDIA Nyd de videoer og den musik, du holder af, upload originalt indhold, og del det hele med venner, familie og verden på YouTube.