Progressive Migration Group

Migration is a major driver of development and prosperity. According to the World Bank, international remittances to lowand middle-income countries worldwide reached $656 billion in 2023 – more than direct foreign investment and far more than official development assistance to those countries. However, remittances are only one of the development benefits that migration brings. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development also recognises migration as a powerful driver of sustainable development because migration benefits not only migrants and host countries, but also their communities – through social, technological and skills transfers, as well as through investment and cultural diversity. The Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration aligns with the 2030 Agenda by emphasising the multi-dimensional nature of migration and the need for a comprehensive approach to it that involves all policy areas.

In practice, however, the development potential of migration is insufficiently exploited. This is also true of European migration policy, which focuses primarily on preventing irregular migration.

The Progressive Migration Group finds no contradiction between managing migration and promoting development through migration, as they can be combined to meet the people’s interests in both Europe and Africa. The Progressive Migration Group therefore calls for a development-oriented and rights-based approach to EU migration policy. This will foster sustainable development, reduce poverty and support families in countries of origin, recognising the crucial role migrants and diaspora communities play in the economic, cultural and social development of European societies by contributing to their diversity, resilience and prosperity.

The views expressed in this document do not necessarily represent those of any of the organisations with which the members of the Progressive Migration Group are affiliated.

This policy brief is centred around remittances – defined by the International Monetary Fund as money migrants send home, which represents part of their income and earnings. While remittances may be in the form of either cash or goods to support their families and may be sent through various channels (such as digital services, post office and money operators), official statistics often do not entirely capture these flows and their broad scope, , which can also entail skills and knowledge transfers, as well as social and cultural exchange. The official reference limits remittances to two items in the balance of payments framework: personal transfers and compensation of employees. Furthermore, the limited tracking and collection of remittance data among countries impacts regional and global reporting.

This brief intends to discuss remittances in the broader sense, despite data limitations. It also offers recommendations to EU policymakers centred around remittances as a game changer, the need for a balanced narrative on migration and the recognition of a new Africa, which has matured in its knowledge and skills base.

European Union labour markets increasingly need non-EU workers to fill the labour shortages that exist at all skill levels across the EU. Yet hostile attitudes in EU countries towards immigration stand in the way of addressing domestic shortages with non-EU workers. As for Africa, labour migration to the EU can play a key role in Africa's development, provided that policies are designed with African interests in mind.

African countries should therefore be equal players in designing labour migration agreements to safeguard their interests and ensure co-ownership. This policy brief, after unpacking some of these complexities of Africa-EU labour migration, provides recommendations on how to improve labour migration policy for both parties. It calls for better communication on the need for labour migration to the EU, better integration policy and labour migration agreements that are developed in the interests of African countries.

Migration policymakers often desire to use development cooperation to manage migration, while development experts insist that development policy should be first and foremost about the Sustainable Development Goals. This policy brief examines how this approach is reflected in the current reform of the Common European Asylum System (CEAS) and other policy initiatives, to what extent the current use of development cooperation for migration management is in line with the SDGs, and whether and how the controversies between the two policy areas can be overcome.

It concludes that the EU's current migration and asylum policies are at odds with the SDGs and the EU’s Aid Effectiveness Agenda, both in spirit and in practice, for example when it comes to the use of conditionality. The policy brief posits that a progressive migration policy could even argue for the instrumentalisation of migration policy for development goals: promoting fair and well-regulated migration arrangements to foster economic and social development.

In September 2020, the European Commission presented a 'New Pact on Migration and Asylum' that proposed "a comprehensive approach, bringing together policy in the areas of migration, asylum, integration and border management, and European Union's relations with third countries". The proposal consists of an intricate and complicated set of legislation that, at least in theory, should reform the EU's current asylum and migration policy, and ensure a holistic approach to migration management.

The European legislators adopted the 'new' Pact in May 2024. The Pact has been criticised by many observers, who regard it, beyond the dominant rhetoric that speaks of reform, as 'old wine in a new bottle'. The Pact, in fact, insists on the existing EU strategy, focused on curtailing 'irregular migration' and on the securitisation of migration. Such a regressive approach does not comply with human rights standards and worsens migrants' vulnerabilities. Furthermore, the Pact does not take into consideration the interests and needs of the origin and transit countries it will have an impact on. This policy brief argues that only a negotiated strategy between Africa and Europe that reflects a common understanding of migration, mobility and development can eventually benefit both continents.

Migration policy discourses within the European Union have favoured a trend towards the so-called externalisation of migration policies, aimed, at least theoretically, to mitigate 'irregular migration'. African countries have been a key target of this approach. EU narratives around externalisation are centred on the large and 'dangerous' flows of African migrants arriving by sea, and ignore the stories of the thousands of asylum seekers stuck in border countries in inhumane conditions or of the millions of Africans who prefer to migrate within their continent for trade and work purposes.

This policy brief highlights the political, economic and social transformations caused by European externalisation policies within African states. The EU and its member states – using their political and economic leverage – are making deals with African states, urging them to replace their existing free movement protocols with the EU's requirement to stop migration flows. The emphasis on restricting migration to Europe combined with the shortage of legal migratory pathways is contributing to prolonged displacement in border towns and camps where asylum seekers and refugees suffer deprivation and fall prey to smugglers and traffickers.

The funds from externalisation deals are being channeled towards the militarisation of borders and are bolstering the capacity of both state and non-state actors – especially in Libya and Tunisia – to perpetrate human rights abuses against African migrants. This policy brief surmises that externalisation perpetuates immobility amongst historically mobile African groups, results in the loss of livelihoods, introduces new forms of displacement, creates a surge in human smuggling and trafficking, and leads to unprecedented human rights abuses.