Activities of OECD in 1995

Enlarged debate of the Assembly on the activities of OECD in 1995

Doc. 7631

6 September 1996

CONTRIBUTION[1]

by Mr LUÍS, Portugal, Socialist Group)

1. Introduction

1.         Since the early 1990s, international migration has been a matter of growing concern to OECD member states which are seeking to co-operate more closely in this area, particularly with a view to achieving better control of migratory movements. Following the renewal of its mandate in 1996, the OECD Working Group on Migration has, therefore, stepped up and expanded its activities. The Continuous Reporting System on Migration (SOPEMI), which is responsible to the OECD Secretariat, continues to publish statistical information in its annual report entitled ŤTrends in international migrationť, the most recent edition of which is from 1995.

2. Major trends in international migration

2.         The above-mentioned report, which is based on ongoing monitoring and analysis of the situation in the different countries, concludes that, following the acceleration and diversification of migratory flows in 1990 and 1991, the worldwide trend towards stabilisation observed in OECD countries since the end of 1992 is continuing. However, this stabilisation is mainly the result of the restrictive policies adopted by the host countries rather than of a reduction in migration potential, which still remains very high.

3.         Consequently, the policies for controlling migratory flows are only an adjunct, albeit an essential one at the moment, to the policies designed to assist the economic development of migrants' countries of origin with a view to creating more jobs. It is interesting to note in this context that, according to the OECD Development Centre, for some developing countries, encouraging their workforce to emigrate as a means of acquiring hard currency and easing pressure on the labour market is an integral part of their development policy.

4.         The SOPEMI report also notes that in tandem with strengthening the policies designed to control migratory flows, OECD states are stepping up their immigrant integration policies.

3. Work in progress

5.         In light of the major trends in international migration, the working group has established the following priority activity areas:

a.         Temporary worker migration

6.         On the basis of the forecasts which predict that the increasing globalisation and interdependence of economies will lead to more frequent short-term migration and exchanges of skilled labour, the working group has carried out case studies on Canada, the United States, France and the United Kingdom. Studies are being prepared on Germany, Australia and Switzerland and a consolidated report will be drawn up at the end of this project.

b.         Immigration and social transfers

7.         The object of these studies is the approximate quantification of the net impact of social transfers related to immigration, in other words the burden which the immigrant population does or does not place on social protection systems, particularly following changes in the structure of this population. A preliminary study which has already been completed shows that, while in the 1960s and 1970s the immigrant population consisted mainly of young economically active unemployed persons, the increased flows brought about by family reunification and the economic slowdown have meant that the net result of social transfers is no longer positive.

c.         Employment of illegal aliens or immigrants

8.         Because of growing concern in OECD countries over illegal immigration, the working group has launched a three year project (1995-97) to examine and analyse existing legislation and the measures taken to date, as well as the reasons why clandestine immigrants continue to be employed in certain economic sectors and certain regions.

d.         Migration, free trade and regional integration

9.         As part of a three year project (1995-97), the working group will study the impact on migration of measures aimed at liberalising international trade and encouraging regional economic integration.

e.         Urban development and migration

10.        A project to be carried out between June 1995 and December 1996 will explore the complex relationships which exist between urban development and the integration of migrants with a view to presenting recommendations to the member states.

11.        Other studies envisaged by the working group include, in particular, the project to examine the question of the integration of immigrants. It should also be stressed that the working group is placing greater emphasis than before on the migration of OECD country nationals within the OECD zone and on migratory movements in Asia, particularly south-east Asia.

4. The need for a co-ordinated approach

12.        The Committee on Migration, Refugees and Demography shares the OECD working group's view that migrationss will continue to be one of the major concerns of European countries, and welcomes the broadening of the group's activities. It also takes the view that closer co-operation with other organisations working in the same areas is necessary to ensure better complementarity and avoid duplication.

13.        Regarding co-operation with the Council of Europe, the committee considers that, for example, the OECD study project on the assessment and analysis of the integration of immigrants (particularly schooling for the children of immigrants, integration of immigrants of the same nationality in different host countries and integration on the labour market) should take account of the significant achievements of the Council of Europe in this area. It should be borne in mind that, following the Council of Europe's European Committee on Migration (CDMG) projects on ŤCommunity and Ethnic Relations in Europeť and ŤThe integration of immigrants: towards equal opportunitiesť, the European Ministers responsible for Migration Affairs, meeting in Warsaw from 16 to 18 June 1996, launched a new project entitled ŤTensions and tolerance: building better integrated communities across Europeť. The ministers also asked the CDMG to draw up a new document based on the report on intercommunity relations and taking account of recent developments and the enlargement of the Council of Europe. Likewise, the results of the work of the Council of Europe's European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) are highly relevant to the study of integration problems. Practical ways and means of co-ordination between the OECD working group and the competent bodies of the Council of Europe should therefore be found.

14.        Other potential areas for closer co-operation are temporary work and the employment of clandestine workers, sectors in which both the OECD working group and the CDMG are active. In 1995 the CDMG published its report on short-term migration for employment and training purposes.

15.        Migration policies must be devised on the basis of reliable and comparable data. The committee therefore welcomes the OECD projects for extending the network of SOPEMI correspondants and improving the quality of national statistics. It wishes to stress in this context that several international bodies are involved in gathering information on international migration, for example, the International Labour Office (ILO), the Commission of the European Union, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), Eurostat, the United Nations Statistics Division, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, the CDMG, etc. The committee therefore wishes to reiterate the need for closer co-operation between the different organisations in drawing up statistics and, possibly, pooling of resources.

16.        In this context, the committee appreciates the usefulness of the ŤDirectory of non-governmental organisations in the OECD member countriesť kept by the OECD Development Research Centre. Because of the substantial cost of publishing periodical updates of this huge directory to keep abreast of the changes continually taking place, (the last edition of the directory of NGOs working in the fields of human rights, refugees, migrants and development dates from 1993) it would be very useful if the database could be accessed on the Internet.

5. Demographic issues

17.        The committee welcomes the follow-up by the OECD Development Assistance Committee to the Cairo International Conference of September 1994 on population and development and the support given to developing countries in implementing the action programme adopted at that conference. The members of the DAC have, in particular, supported national family planning and population research programmes in these countries.

6. Amendment to the draft resolution on the activities of OECD in 1995

18.        The Committee on Migration, Refugees and Demography proposes to insert the following paragraph into the draft resolution presented by the Committee on Economic Affairs and Development:

            ŤThe enlarged Assembly welcomes the increasing attention given by OECD to migration problems and, taking into account the substantial achievements of the Council of Europe in studying certain specific problems related to migration, is in favour of closer co-operation between the Council of Europe and OECD in this area in order to ensure greater complementarity and avoid duplication.ť

Reporting committee: Committee on Economic Affairs and Development (Doc. 7615).

This contribution was approved by the Committee on Migration, Refugees and Demography on 29 August 1996.

Secretaries to the committee: Mr Newman, Mr Sich and Mrs Nachilo.

[1]. By the Committee on Migration, Refugees and Demography