Institute:

UNU-CRIS

The UNESCO-UNU Chair in Regional Integration, Migration and Free Movement of People aims to help formulate and advocate policies that facilitate the free movement of people across borders through research, policy analysis and policy networking. Its main focus is on the role of regional associations of governments in facilitating free movement both within and between regions. A particular emphasis of its work is to try to ensure that free movement takes place in conditions which enable those moving to access equitably entitlements to residence, work, social protection, health, education and other social services. An initial focus of the Chair is the furtherance of these objectives in Southern Africa. The specific objectives of this Chair are to (a) serve as think tank and bridge-builder, and become a pole of excellence for the sharing of expertise to enhance the free movement of people in the Southern African region, decrease contentious debates and have an open problem solving communication, in line with UNESCO’s priorities and the UN Millennium Development Goals; (b) contribute to the promotion and consolidation of spaces of dialogue, the exchange between social science researchers and policy-makers and a better governance, as well as to formulate policy recommendations regarding the social challenges related to integration, migration and the free movement of people, such as the fight against discrimination and solidarity in the Southern African region; (c) produce a set of orientation guidelines for local and regional representatives, highlighting the main problems that have to be addressed regarding the free movement of people and the effective responses that may be implemented in different contexts; and (d) identify ways to make an optimal use of regional integration in order to improve dialogue between different ethnic groups and facilitate the movement of people through the mutual recognition of qualifications.

You can find more information on the UNU-CRIS project page.