EL BLOG DE LA FIIAPP. Cooperación Española

How did the FIIAPP start to manage migration projects?

The FIIAPP started working on migration issues in2006. The Migration and Development programme was created due to the so-called ‘Crisis of the cayucos’, which arose in 2004-2005 with the arrival of Sub-Saharan Africans to the Canary Islands in an irregular situation, and to the importance of understanding this issue not as an issue limited to border management but also one of understanding the reasons why these citizens are leaving andrisking their lives. And it was started for the purpose of collaborating with the government agencies that work on migration issues through the implementation of international cooperation projects. It continues to be an important issue today on Spanish and European foreign action agendas.

And what do these types of cooperation projects consist of?

It’s institutional cooperation that does not address the specific details of supporting legislative reform, for example, in Morocco but rather one that presents practices in issues of remittances and development, practices in integration issues and practices in the labour market, as well as return and reintegration policies. What has worked in one country, why it worked and how it can be replicated.

In what regions does the FIIAPP work?

In West Africa, Mediterranean countries and Latin America and the Caribbean. In the latter, we are working on building public policies, policies for governability, good governance of migratory flows; in West African and Mediterranean countries, we accompany policy dialogues.

How many projects is it currently managing?

There are three: the policy dialogue of the Rabat Process, the dialogue that accompanies the debate with Latin America and the Caribbean on Migration and Development, and the EUROMED Migration III project, which facilitates experience exchanges between the countries of the southern neighbourhood: Mediterranean, Maghreb and Mashrek, and the countries of the European Union.

Are these processes the countries themselves request?

Yes. They arise out of the interest of the countries that we refer to as the countries of origin for migratory flows. In fact, the Rabat Process grew out of the first conference which was held in July 2006 in Rabat between transit, origin and destination countries for migratory movements.

And how does the FIIAPP work with them?

It provides the experience or know-how of Spanish and European governments. It highlights what has worked in European experiences so that it can be replicated in third countries. We facilitate conferences, experience exchanges; we identify experts and best practices; we conduct studies, capacity diagnoses and needs analyses, for example of the job market in Mexico or the Dominican Republic: to what extent those countries, which are now receiving population, have to take into account that migration policy is not a security policy but instead one linked to the job market, and how the population living abroad can be encouraged to return and be a potential source of development for the country of origin.

Do some of these projects work with the migrant?

Yes, indirectly. The policy addresses people and people’s lives, and so there is always a focus that thinks about how to improve this law and who it will impact. In the Latin American and Caribbean project, there is considerable work in the area of financial education, on the use of savings for investment in productive projects. We work with and through interested Latin America and Caribbean countries, with the governments, to construct partnerships between government, the private sector and the migrants and their families.

Do the funds for these projects come from the European Union?

Yes, the European Commission, since 2005, has had a very clear focus on the external aspect of migration, understanding that migration is not just an issue of integration of new citizens but how and at which moments migratory flows towards Europe are generated. Already by 2011 the second global approach to migration and development had been approved, which emphasized the importance of also using an approach that promotes legal migration, combats illegal migration, boosts the positive impact of migration on development in the origin and destination countries, and all of these follow the component of international protection.

Is the European Commission going to continue focusing on migration?

Yes, for the European Commission, in the programming for 2014-2020 the migration issue is a priority, in both integration and security policies and development policies.

The author has sole responsibility for the opinions and comments expressed in this blog

Inequality between women and men cuts across societies and is manifested in issues such as the feminization of poverty, gender violence, lower political participation by women, employment and wage inequality, female illiteracy and the difficulty women have gaining access to full sexual and reproductive health. Almost no country in the world is free of this phenomenon, which reproduces itself to a greater or lesser degree and overlaps with other causes of discrimination and vulnerability, typically aggravating them.

Gender inequality is not the product of specific situations but rather is rooted in the social structure itself and in the traditional division of labour (productive/reproductive) and spaces (public/private) between women and men. The repercussions of social roles are determining factors for social cohesion. With tacit responsibility for the job of caring for others (the young, dependent persons and the elderly), women find it harder to access gainful employment and education and, consequently, economic power. In addition, relegated to the private sphere, women participate less in decision-making spaces and have less of a sense of belonging in the community, which works to the detriment of their rights as citizens.

In short: the work of caring for others has been an unpaid and invisible contribution of women to social cohesion at the cost, paradoxically, of their own welfare and their access to rights, resources and full exercise of citizenship.
Removing these structures is a challenge facing any public policy that pursues equity or social cohesion, and it is one of the challenges facing EUROsociAL. The programme, which works with Latin America on improving public policies for social cohesion, starts from the challenges Europe shares with Latin America in this area, and from the conviction that the gender perspective is essential if we wish to act on the structural mechanisms on which inequality in both regions is based.

Within the framework of these efforts, important progress has been made with initiatives that place a special emphasis on the rights of women. The work done to promote the strengthening of state systems of care, and consequently the assumption by the state of part of this responsibility traditionally shouldered by women, is worth noting. As is the collaboration of the programme in promoting specific policies aimed at women in situations of vulnerability: victims of gender violence, migrants and incarcerated women. Along with these concrete initiatives, the programme encourages a cross-cutting approach to gender in all public policies that it supports or accompanies, most significantly in the areas of education, employment and health.

In any case, the incorporation of the gender focus is not without difficulties in the two regions: resistance, lack of awareness by political actors and consideration of the focus as secondary are frequent obstacles in this area. We can only persevere and be aware of how much ground still needs to be covered. Full citizenship does not exist without full citizenship for women, and a neutral approach to social cohesion fails to take into account that the gender dimension is constructed without regard for the specific needs and potential for development of over half the population.

Clara Linde
Communication and information specialist of the EUROsociAL programme

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What is meant by intercultural justice?

Putting into practice international human rights standards that refer to creating a justice system in which ordinary justice coexists with the different levels of indigenous justice present in each country, known in all regions as “legal pluralism”. Basically it’s a question of finding the formula for the justice systems to coexist and develop in a parallel and complementary manner.

What does “intercultural justice” mean in the Peruvian context?

In Peru it means an important step forward in terms of strengthening the role of the judiciary as an institution that guarantees rights in terms of strengthening compliance with international standards Peru has adopted through ratification—such as IOM Convention 169; and in practice its means a path to conflict resolution and establishment of understanding where up to now there has been a very complicated coexistence.

The access to justice line of action, in its intercultural justice component in Peru, who it is aimed at?

The interesting thing about the project is that it worked with the Judiciary, with the National Office of Justice and Peace (ONAJUP), and the ultimate beneficiaries of this entire process are not just this institution but also extend to all the civil servants of the justice system, and to the indigenous peoples and “rondas campesinas” who have their own systems of justice. What we have done is to establish a series of action and coordination protocols so that pathways are established which allow the authorities of the different justice systems to have a relationship of equality, of recognition of rights, of authority, that lets them coexist and create this system of intercultural justice within the countries, breaking down the previous dynamics in which special justice authorities were even criminalized—in the case of the “rondera” authorities—for exercising their judicial authority.

Have you noted any feedback yet in any population—”ronderos”, indigenous leaders, for example—regarding the interest or relevance of the project?

We put the finishing touch on this project with a series of training courses we held in three cities in the country: Cuzco, Iquitos and Pucallpa, held in parallel with personnel from the Peruvian justice system and authorities from the special justice systems. What indigenous and “rondero” leaders who exercise forms of special justice have transmitted to us is that this dialogue represents a very interesting tool for continuing to progress in this process of building an intercultural justice system.

What change will it bring about in the populations? Will it help reduce conflicts?

The protocols aren’t going to solve all the problems indigenous communities in Peru have. The latest report of the Committee Against Racial Discrimination was very unforgiving in terms of discrimination because of the levels of racism that exist in the country. But with these protocols and all the things being worked on around them, and the work that the ONAJUP has been contributing, first, to recognizing the indigenous justice systems, which is an extremely important step forward in a country with these levels of racism, in the short term we are already seeing a significant reduction in the criminalization of these special justice systems. The ordinary justice system, therefore, is starting to recognize that there is another form of justice, one that has equal legitimacy in its social environments, which must be respected, and that relationships of coexistence and coordination must be established with these authorities.

*Regarding this entire experience, the Spanish Law Foundationand Justice International Cooperation, operational partners in the Justice area coordinated by Expertise France, prepared a document entitled “Intercultural Justice in Peru: 21 years later” which describes the entire process explained by Mikel Berraondo in this interview through its leading actors.

The author has sole responsibility for the opinions and comments expressed in this blog

The year 2014 is coming to an end. What headline should we use to ring out the old year?

The year 2014 has been the one with the highest number of awarded contracts and the largest budgetary execution volume in the history of the Foundation. With new contract awards totalling more than €60 million and execution of nearly €45 million, we’ve been able to increase our activity in the service of administrations (56% increase in execution in the last five years). With outside funding exceeding 90% of the annual budget, the FIIAPP is creating opportunities for foreign outreach by Spanish public administrations at a very low cost to the General State Administration (AGE).

–          What are the most important projects that were managed this year?

The FIIAPP managed the 300th twinning programme of the EU, making it the leading European operator for these types of projects. In addition, in coordination with the MAEC and Interior, we’ve managed to make Spain a major actor in the execution of EU activities in the area of prevention of chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) threats, including activities in regions affected by Ebola. Another important milestone is the diversification of funding sources for our activities, with a significant degree of direct contracting of services by middle-income countries, such as Colombia, which are interested in the experiences of Spanish administration in the application of public policies, and the signing of agreements with the World Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank.

–          How is the FIIAPP promoting Brand Spain?

The actions of the FIIAPP are within the framework of Spanish foreign policy and they support the activities of the Spanish government in the priority geographic and action areas. It’s an instrument for exporting the best practices and public policy models of the Spanish government. It contributes to promoting and strengthening relationships of trust with the governments of other countries and with international bodies in sectors like security, climate change, infrastructure management and modernization of public administrations, among others. The 1,000 civil servants sent abroad each year are ambassadors for Brand Spain. They carry their knowledge to the 89 countries where they work, and there they are considered consummate professionals.

–          What sectors does the FIIAPP work in and which does it want to strengthen?

The FIIAPP contemplates the action of the AGE and works transversally in most of the action areas established in Law 2/2014, of 25th March, on Foreign Action and Service of the State in its second chapter.
Currently it acts in nine priority sectors for foreign action: Social Policies and Rights, Migration and Mobility, Public Finance, Development and Communication, Green Economy, Security and Development, the Fight Against Organized Crime, Justice, and Transparency.
It also participates in joint activities with the AECID (projects) and the SGCID (supporting the Assessment and Monitoring Plan and effectiveness of cooperation), and supports some activities of the AGE (evaluation of labour reform, evaluation of the reform of public administrations).

We strengthen the activities that are priorities for our administrations, but we want to become a benchmark in the management of international cooperation projects that address global threats (related to security in all its aspects [bio, cyber, citizen, physical, etc.], climate change and migration, etc.).

–          What is the impact of FIIAPP projects on the lives of citizens all over the world?

We manage experience exchanges between public administrations. What does that mean? That we transfer knowledge and best practices in public policies to public-sector managers who are designing or implementing new policies in their countries. Out of these experiences, they choose the inputs that can be adapted to their national reality. These measures then have an impact that benefits the citizen. In Cuba, in a project we managed in support of incipient socio-economic reforms in the country, they defined us as “knowledge messengers”.

For example, Spain has one of the most prestigious organ transplant systems in the world. In Moldova, which in the 1990s became a source country for illegal organs, Spanish experts are working with the administrations to strengthen the laws and improve the efficiency of the transplant service. They’re bringing it into compliance with international quality standards and contributing to making Moldovans recover their trust in the system and in healthcare workers, and breaking the mental association between transplants and organ trafficking.

–          What are the objectives for the coming year?

As a public operator, the FIIAPP will prioritize all activities aimed at improving its systems and effectiveness in managing the public funds it administers. We are looking ahead at considerable work related to concentrating on activities that are priority for the administrations and identifying and disseminating internationally the best practices of these administrations. We also want to finish introducing the impact assessment as a fundamental element of our projects.

–          Will the assessment be a strong point in coming years?

Our Assessment Programme has the principal objective of undertaking joint activities with the SGCID within the framework of the Spanish Cooperation Assessment Plan. Nonetheless, the Foundation wants to introduce the impact assessment as one of its identifying features within the framework of the management of its projects. We want the assessments to guide the design of future activities and thereby contribute to developing a results-based model. Assessment is fundamental for improving our management and increasing the impact of our activities in terms of real improvements in public policies that benefit the citizen.

You can listen to the interview with Pedro Flores on “Public Cooperation Around the World” on Radio 5

Lucid and balanced, two terms that should be considered essential when it comes to developing adequate migration policies. Lucid, because it’s necessary to observe the reality of migration as it is: a phenomenon originally initiated by the person but which currently, as a result of unsustainable socio-economic inequality, has become a reality forced upon many. And balanced because migration, being a complex reality, requires global and cross-cutting responses that take into account both the situation of the migrants and that of the countries of origin, transit and destination.

These ideas coincide with the principles that gave rise to the Rabat Process, Euro-African Dialogue on Migration and Development, begun in Morocco in 2006 to address issues related to Euro-African migration and, more specifically, with the West African migration route, by adopting a flexible approach and a spirit of shared responsibility.

Why talk about the Rabat Process here?

It’s clear that the problems and challenges of migration require coordinated political responses, and to be viable and realistic they must integrate the needs and interests of the main stakeholders. The Rabat Process in recent years has demonstrated its mutable and evolving nature in which the priorities are defined following exchange and discussion between the countries, international organizations and civil society.  In turn, it offers a balanced approach that makes it possible to fight irregular migration, organize legal migration and strengthen the synergies between migration and development in parallel.

Why talk about the Rabat Process now?

On 27th November, the Ministers, Secretaries of State and other representatives of some 60 countries in Europe, and North, Central and West Africa, as well as the European and African Commissioners responsible for migration policies, development and foreign relations, approved the policy declaration of the Rabat Process and its execution programme for 2015-2017 in Rome.
How should we think of the new document and this new stage?
To achieve feasible goals and meet commitments, the agreement must take into account the situation of each participating country and be built in tune with the new circumstances and priorities. If not, it is condemned to failure.
The unanimous acceptance of the “Rome Declaration” represents advantages and benefits for both the African and the European partners, and it reveals a certain degree of adaptation to the current context.

In effect the new strategic document reflects the observations and concerns of recent months: growing migratory pressure at the gateways to the European Union and alarming migration circumstances generated by human trafficking and exploitation that puts thousands of lives at risk.

Thus the Rome Declaration proposes two priority thematic axes:

• The first axis addresses the deep causes of migration through improvement of socio-economic frameworks while promoting the links between migration and development. In this sense, the new agreement promotes concrete measures for improving the participation and contribution of members of the diaspora in the development of their counties of origin. For example, it involves encouraging business initiatives in productive sectors through the use of incentives such as the implementation of public-private partnerships, investment guarantee funds, financial education programmes or reduction of the costs of remittances.

•  The second axis aims to strengthen prevention and the fight against irregular migration and especially human trafficking and exploitation of migrants. Evidently it refers especially to all the recent tragedies in the Mediterranean, showing a determination to dismantle organized crime networks that profit from the desperation of migrants whose dream of a dignified life is cut short.

The new declaration also promotes preventive measures for awareness-raising and training, operational and coercive measures based on cooperation between countries for joint border management, the creation of mixed patrols and services specialized in control of transborder crime, as well as legal measures and training of judicial staff to improve the systems of reception and protection.

In fact, this new agreement proposes a new main working line, a thematic pillar related to the promotion of access to international protection by asylum seekers and refugees, a very important initiative given the context of Africa in recent years in which crises and massive population displacement have multiplied.

With this new declaration, the Rabat Process continues to promote cooperation between countries to jointly construct a global approach that is adapted to the challenges of migration. What’s more, it’s inspiring new regional dialogues: the Khartoum Process was inaugurated on 28th November to respond to the challenges of the East African migration route.

Lucid and balanced, two adjectives that seem to accompany these political processes that still require effort and commitment to put their lessons into practice and achieve chosen migration that is legal and safe.

More information about the “Euro-African Dialogue on Migration and Development” (Rabat Process) is available at: www.processusderabat.net

The author has sole responsibility for the opinions and comments expressed in this blog