On 2-3 April, Maastricht University hosted the World University's Network Second Annual Migration Conference. This was a great event bringing together scholars from across the WUN network from around the world. A great moment in the overall conference was the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between IOM and WUN to share information and data on migration. Together with Ann Singleton, I co-organized one of the panel themes on forced, hidden and irregular migration. These sessions … [Read more...]
Launch of the First Migration Course at University College Maastricht
As Maastricht University enters period 4 of the 2015/2016 academic year, it is very exciting that for the first time the University College Maastricht (UCM) is offering a course on migration! Thanks to the innovation of Interim Dean, Teun Dekker, this course was added to the course calender late last year to bring the topic of migration to UCM students. The course was met with a fantastic response and has over 80 students enrolled. I am happy to be the Course Coordinator and Developer of the … [Read more...]
The Broker Living Analysis- Lack of shared responsibility turns Turkey into gateway instead of safe stay
The Broker is a think net on globalization and development that synthesized and analyzes knowledge and information. They have just conducted a living analysis of the current migration crises in Europe, for which I have contributed a piece on Turkey below. As both the largest host of refugees worldwide and a transit country for refugees travelling to Europe, Turkey is one of the main players in the current refugee crisis. Despite several government services to refugees, … [Read more...]
Global Forum on Migration and Development
As a member of the International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC) International Steering Committee organizing the Civil Society Days at the Global Forum on Migration and Development (GFMD), I have thoroughly enjoyed the last three days at the GFMD. Hosted by Istanbul, a city in the midst of the current migration crisis, and with Turkey now being the largest host country for refugees in the world. The days were rich in discussion and debate with several excellent speakers and the Syrian … [Read more...]
Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs Migration Presentation
On 1 October I was invited to give a talk to the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs on migration by the Africa Group. The talk was a high level overview of migration myths, trends, and current developments in Africa. It was great discussion and I am grateful for the opportunity to present and share my take on migration issues. The presentation concluded with my four recommendations for the ministry to consider: 1) Migration should not be viewed as problem- This statement has been clearly made … [Read more...]