Refugee Policy

Annette Schlicht
+49 30 26935-7486

International Cooperation Division
Global and European Policy Department

Protection against Violence and Persecution

From a global perspective, the phenomenon of flight is nothing new; rather, it has been a tragic constant, especially during the past few decades. Nevertheless, the number of those seeking sanctuary around the globe has been rising for years. The war in Syria has moved the crucible of crisis closer to Europe; however, the numerous and unrelenting conflicts in Eritrea, Somalia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Afghanistan, Iraq, and elsewhere have tested the limits of the international refugee regime.

 


Articles on refugee policy

Migrants prepare for a football match at the beach.

What the EU can learn from Africa

Displacement, Migration, Integration | Refugee Policy | Migration policy

Many African countries are mainstreaming migration governance for greater coherence and inclusivity. Europe can draw some valuable lessons from this.


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Migrants onboard PROTEA, on the voyage to Australia

Is it time to turn down the volume on the migration debate?

Displacement, Migration, Integration | Refugee Policy | Migration policy

Loudly opposing restrictive migration policies is counterproductive; a quieter, more honest approach might be better suited for shifting the debate


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June 29, 2022, Nador, Morocco: View of the border between Nador and Melilla.

The EU’s blind spots

Displacement, Migration, Integration | Refugee Policy

EU’s externalisation policy is benefitting smugglers, has adverse effect for Africa’s economic and social prosperity and overlooks that 96% of African...


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ExCom 2023 with 3 refugee advisors on state delegations: US, Canada and Germany.

Shifting Power: Advancing Refugee Participation at the Global Refugee Forum

Displacement, Migration, Integration | Refugee Policy

Increased participation at the upcoming GRF can increase refugees’ tangible influence on issues that directly impact their lives.


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Seenotrettung: private Seenotretter der Organisation "Ärzte ohne Grenzen" im zentralen Mittelmeer: die als Rettungsschiff gecharterte "Geo Barents" mit Overlay der Artikelreihe zur EU-Asylreform

Taking aim at sea rescue

Displacement, Migration, Integration | Refugee Policy

How the EU and its Member States are hindering civilian sea rescues and exacerbating the humanitarian disaster in the Mediterranean


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EU-finanzierter Teil des befestigten Grenzzauns mit Wachturm entlang des Evros-Flusses zwischen Griechenland und Türkei. Darauf zu sehen ist ein Overlay der FES-Artikelreihe zur GEAS, ein Symbol aus Stacheldraht und den 12 Sternen der Europaflagge..

No peace in sight

Displacement, Migration, Integration | Refugee Policy

The EU is preparing a new asylum compromise. But it does not really bring anything new to the table. The disappointed expectations of the citizens will...


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Weltkarte in Grau und Weiß. Hervorgehoben sind die Länder Mexiko, Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador, Gambia, Liberia, Ghana, Mali, Nigeria, Kosovo und Bangladesch.

Changing reintegration in a meaningful way

Displacement, Migration, Integration | Refugee Policy

Reintegration assistance for migrants going home is important for the EU. And yet, it is ineffective — involving returnee initiatives can reverse that.


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Refugee policy in the spotlight

Flight worldwide

More than 70 million people worldwide are fleeing war, violence and persecution. According to the UN refugee agency UNHCR, an average of 44,400 people had to leave their homes every day. 41.3 million of them are internally displaced, 3.5 million are awaiting the outcome of their asylum procedure, and nearly 25 million are fleeing to other countries. More than half of these refugees are under the age of 18. The number of internally displaced persons has also increased in recent years. This is an indication that it is becoming increasingly difficult to find asylum in safe foreign countries in the event of armed conflict.

Even in the case of cross-border flight, few are at the gates of Europe. Nine out of ten people who are on the run flee to immediate neighboring countries. 84 percent of all refugees are taken in by developing countries (in 2003, the figure was still 70 percent), and almost a third of all refugees find refuge in the Least Developed Countries, i.e. in countries where people have an average of less than $1.25 per day at their disposal. Measured in terms of economic prosperity, Europe takes in very few refugees. Only 1 to 2 percent of all refugees worldwide come to Europe.

This is also due to the lack of safe escape routes for them. Instead, many of the escape routes involve great danger for people, such as the journey in unsafe boats across the Mediterranean.

Around 78 percent of the world's refugees are in so-called "protracted situations," long-term situations that last an average of twenty years and thus become a permanent matter with completely new challenges for the people in the camps and the host countries.

European refugee policy

With regard to European refugee policy, topics such as:

  • the support of the European countries of arrival
  • the distribution of refugees within the EU and the Dublin system
  • the "protection" of the European external borders and the tasks of FRONTEX
  • Europe's cooperation with transit countries such as Turkey, Morocco or Libya

often at the center of the political debate.

In this context, refugees are often seen as an anonymous mass of people against whom one has to seal oneself off. In this way, the individual legal rights of refugees, which are based on the Geneva Refugee Convention, among other things, and the underlying causes of flight are sometimes disregarded and ignored. However, a solidarity-based refugee policy in Europe can improve cooperation and the sharing of responsibilities among states worldwide.

National refugee policy

In German refugee policy, too, questions of reception capacity are often set against the rights of refugees. Questions about asylum, deportation and accommodation in large refugee shelters often dominate the public debate. The classification of states as "safe countries of origin" is also intended to relieve the asylum system in this regard. What is needed instead, however, are global pacts and national readiness to accept refugees so that they can exercise their right to protection.

Although there are still many construction sites, Germany is taking responsibility and trying to offer those seeking protection a perspective on life. Many people throughout the country are helping with this and are getting involved both in the concrete situation of the first arrival and in the task of permanent integration and are forming friendships with the refugees.

On this page you will find analyses of the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung on German, European and worldwide refugee policy as well as background reports and information on the situation of refugees.