Vista: What efforts are being made to measure and facilitate the integration of migrants to Europe?

NGOs had been pressing for the adoption of such measures prior to 2010 and gave a cautious welcome to the 2010 Zaragoza Declaration. The Migrant Integration Policy Index was developed by an NGO and used a six point measure of integration (Brussels, 2007). The highest scoring country in terms of labour market access was Sweden. Sweden also scored highly in terms of policies that facilitated family reunion. Countries with the strictest penalties for discrimination on grounds of ethnicity and nationality (among others) included the UK, Portugal, Finland, and Sweden. Citizenship to children of resident migrants was most readily extended by Belgium, France, Ireland, Portugal and the UK. Generally, the least restrictions for migrants were found in the areas of access to employment, perhaps a reflection of the economic argument often presented by the more politically and economically liberal-minded individuals and organisations of Europe. Migrants generally have lower disposable incomes, live closer to the poverty level, and have lower levels of private home ownership, making them particularly vulnerable to unscrupulous private landlords...Read more