CoMiDe – Consistency of Migration and Development Policy

Migration has the potential to serve as an engine of growth and development for all parties involved – host and source countries and the migrants themselves” (8th Council of Europe Conference of Ministers responsible for migration, 2008). Only recently in Mid-April 2010 the Commission points out in its new communication “Getting the MDGs back on track” as one of its twelve points EU action plan the importance to use other EU policies like migration to act in coherence with development. Consistency in the context of migration is one of the main demands for development co-operation policies today. Because traditionally migration and development are treated as separate policy portfolios; but today migration and development are increasingly viewed through the prism of the many links that exist between these two fields. While development-oriented actions can help tackling the root causes of migratory flows, migration can contribute positively to development, including economic growth, social empowerment and technological progress and assure a rights-based approach to development cooperation programs. The project aim to contribute to consistency of development policy by making migration and development policy work together not against each other (e.g. European immigration policy takes up development issues); to contribute to the MDGs, especially poverty eradication through linking migration and development policy and thereby leading to more effective projects and policies and to contribute to media attention for development through media work (especially migration, development and other interested media).