The European Migration Network
Pan-European Network for Asylum and Migration
The European Migration Network (EMN) is intended to provide objective and reliable data on the fields of migration and asylum to the organs of the European Union, to the Member States and to the wider public.
The EMN is intended to establish a systematic foundation for monitoring and analysing the multifaceted phenomenon of migration and asylum in order to support policy and decision-making procedures in the European Union.
A Steering Board composed of one representative from each Member State and one representative of the Commission adopts the EMN's annual Work Programme
On 14 May 2008 the Decision of the Council of the EU (Council Decision 2008/381/EC) created the legal basis for the European Migration Network, the EMN.
National Contact Points and partners
The Network consists of National Contact Points nominated by the Governments of the Member States and is coordinated by the Directorate-General for Home Affairs of the European Commission. The Federal Office for Migration and Refugees performs the function of the National Contact Point for Germany.
The Member States established national networks of relevant players in order to develop as extensive as possible a view of the situation in the Member States. The Federal Office as Contact Point has established a balanced network of experts in Germany. More than 20 network partners such as Universities, research facilities, international organisations and state agencies work with the Federal Office, and are nationally networked with one another.
Background
In its conclusions of December 2001, the European Council (Laeken) called on the European Commission to develop a system for exchanging information on all aspects of migration, which is to contribute to creating a joint asylum and immigration policy.
Thereupon, the EMN was initiated as a pilot project in 2002 and implemented from 2004 to the end of 2006 as a preparatory measure. The European Council (Thessaloniki) of June 2003 welcomed the establishment of the EMN and stated that a permanent structure might be set up in the future.
The Hague Programme for the years 2005 to 2009 confirmed the need for joint analyses on the phenomenon of migration. This includes the collection, provision, exchange and efficient use of topical information..
The successor Stockholm Programme contains many elements for the better exchange of information between Member States across the wide range of asylum and migration policy developments.
