EMN inform: Coherent return and reintegration assistance (2024) (external website)

• The European Union (EU) Strategy for Voluntary Return and Reintegration identifies key challenges affecting the coherent implementation of return and reintegration policy, including insufficient coordination among stakeholders and lack of a coherent framework. This inform aims to identify the approaches used to ensuring coherence between different return and reintegration actors at national level and EU
• More than half of the contributing European Migration Network (EMN) Member and Observer Countries reported adopting a coherent approach to return and reintegration assistance. Coherence is understood and implemented in a variety of ways and may consist of institutional cooperation, coordination and division of competences between national return and reintegration actors which is prescribed in legislation; national strategies on return; Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs); projects and/or practical implementation elements (e.g. guidelines).
• Most EMN Member and Observer Countries reported not having national guidelines, policy or background documents in place to ensure coherence with the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex) EU Reintegration Programme (EURP), or the EU frame[1]work on return counselling and the Frontex Workplan on return and reintegration counselling
• About half of the EMN Member and Observer Countries have specific mechanisms or platforms to ensure and/or monitor collaboration between different stakeholders. Several countries have established working groups or regular meetings between the key stakeholders involved.
• Most countries reported challenges to ensure a coherent approach to return and reintegration at national level. The main challenges include communication and coordination, lack of (trained) staff, lack of harmonisation at EU level, lack of sufficient monitoring data, and funding issues.
• The majority of EMN Member and Observer Countries do not have standards or specific monitoring indicators to evaluate the promotion of voluntary return and reintegration and/or coherence. A small number reported evaluation and monitoring activities, primarily focusing on internal systems and reintegration outcomes.
• Some EMN Member and Observer Countries noted that a lack of coherence at national level can create unnecessary overlaps, bottlenecks and ineffective work. A lack of information-sharing may result in duplication of activities, unnecessary planning, and ineffective use of resources.
• Most EMN Member and Observer Countries reported that their return and reintegration policy is aligned with other national policies, mainly internal security and development assistance policies.