Background:

Promoting active citizenship and participation is a central element of EU Member States’ integration efforts. Common Basic Principle n°9 recognises the importance of the participation of immigrants in the democratic process, therefore requiring due attention by all Member States. One way to foster the participation of immigrant populations is by establishing a structured dialogue between immigrants and governments through the constitution of national immigrant consultative bodies (some Member States make use of other forms of structured dialogue, such as consultative committees, civil society organisations’ forums, informal forums and others).

In Spain, the State Secretariat for Migration, through the Spanish Observatory on Racism and Xenophobia, recently approved the Strategic Framework for Citizenship and Inclusion, against Racism and Xenophobia (2023-2027). Among its lines of action is to encourage the participation of people of foreign origin in public, institutional and/or community life, paying special attention to youth participation, and to promote the acquisition of skills and knowledge about the spaces for participation and its possibilities. In this context, the Spanish National Contact Point to the EMN launched this query to map relevant practices in promoting institutional and political participation of immigrants and gain insights from other Member States to inspire new policy formulation associated with the Strategic Framework.

Respondents:

23 EMN Member Countries (including BE) provided a public answer to this ad hoc query.

Findings:

A preliminary analysis of the results of the ad hoc query shows that:

• Out of the 23 responding countries, 14 countries have national immigrant consultative bodies or other structured mechanisms for the dialogue between immigrant groups and national government in the formulation of integration policies and measures. In BE, integration falls under the responsibility of the three language-based Communities (Flemish, French and German-speaking). Immigrant consultative bodies are therefore present only at regional level (see below).
   
• Out of the 23 responding countries, 15 countries report also having regional and/or local immigrant consultative bodies or any other structured mechanisms for the dialogue between immigrant groups and local/regional governments in the formulation of integration policies and measures.
   
• Immigrant consultative bodies take different forms: public bodies (5 countries), consultative committees inside the government (6 countries), civil society organisations’ forums (3 countries), informal forums (2 countries), or others. In BE, the Flemish government has a cooperation agreement with the network organisation LEVEL vzw, which is recognised as the participation organisation.
   
• In 10 countries, these consultative bodies met for the last time in the last year (2023-2024). In BE, the participation organisation does not meet on a regular basis but rather works with different partners on relevant topics (policy participation, work, education, anti-discrimination, etc.) on a needs-basis.

Countries also report other mechanisms through which immigrants are consulted by policymakers and authorities on integration policies and measures, each with its own structure and function. Please consult the compilation of answers to the ad hoc query for more details.