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11. The Core Constituents in the Process of National Integration: A Thematic Study

Author:
Gohar Ali Iftikhar
Publication Date:
12-2023
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Political Studies
Institution:
Department of Political Science, University of the Punjab
Abstract:
The process of history has unveiled that the composition of human society is an outcome of diverse historical processes and experiences. It leads to the formation of identities ranging from personal, collective, social and cultural identities. In this retrospect, the progress of national integration has been materialised. The phenomena of national integration are common; however, its understanding, interpretation and manifestation levels differ. Every society, community and nation has defined and defied it in its pertinent context. The present study is a thematic work on the process of national integration focusing on the core constituents which had played a decisive role. It seeks to explore how core constituents became the driving force of national integration and how different countries applied it. Furthermore, the study attempts to describe and analyse thematic patterns in the context of National Integration.
Topic:
History, Integration, Society, National Integration, and Constituents
Political Geography:
Global Focus

12. Paradigm Shifts in Macrosociology

Author:
Renate Mayntz
Publication Date:
06-2023
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Max Planck Sciences Po Center on Coping with Instability in Market Societies (MaxPo)
Abstract:
This paper looks at changes in macrosociological paradigms for social development that traditionally stretch from the primitive society through the stratified medieval society to the image of a functionally differentiated modern society. Changing the perspective from a systems theoretical view of societies to an actor perspective, I focus on populations of individual actors and organizations as collective actors. Over recent decades, important structural changes in the nature of populations and of organizations have taken place in the Western world. The most important relate to economic globalization and financial internationalization. An increasingly flexible population and narrowly goal-specific organizations produce a situation of societal instability that appears to characterize the present, though its causes reach back half a century.
Topic:
Development, Conflict, Integration, and Financial Globalization
Political Geography:
Global Focus

13. Women Police Officers’ Perception of Gender Integration in the Kosovo Police

Author:
Adelina Hasani
Publication Date:
11-2023
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Kosovar Centre for Security Studies (KCSS)
Abstract:
Kosovo has made significant strides in improving women’s political representation by implementing gender quotas to enhance the presence of women in its all state institutions. The enactment of Kosovo’s Law on Gender Equality in May 2015 marked a crucial milestone in strengthening the nation’s legal framework for promoting gender equality. However, despite progress, Kosovo still faces numerous gender equality challenges, particularly in the realms of women’s leadership positions, equal political participation, and ending violence against women. Traditional gender role mentalities, discrimination, and stereotyping have presented significant barriers to women’s involvement in decision-making at all levels, including within the security sector. Despite some notable improvements, the journey towards increased representation of women in the Kosovo Police remains a work in progress. Nevertheless, in many countries, likewise in Kosovo, security sector policies and programming have failed to analyze women’s security needs and priorities adequately and involve women and men equally by integrating their gender perspectives. In such cases, security institutions are often rife with equality gaps and may be unable to provide security for all community members. Efforts aimed at integrating a gender perspective into policies and practices of the security sector have predominantly focused on women’s representation rather than on their specific needs. The data conducted shows that Kosovo’s policies have demonstrated significant efforts to enhance the gender perspective within the Kosovo Police. However, challenges persist, stemming from factors such as the limited participation of women in managerial and decision-making roles, traditional male dominance, patriarchal mindsets, and the need for comprehensive integration of gender perspectives into all laws and regulations governing the Kosovo Police. This report highlights and analyzes women’s critical challenges in the Kosovo Police from the perspective of women police officers. Women’s issues are often not treated as a priority and do not receive the necessary attention. Through this report, we will examine the working environment for women in the Kosovo Police, the primary challenges they encounter, unaddressed issues that have not been taken seriously, policies that should promote gender diversity, and the impact and contribution of women within the the Kosovo Police. The report employs a qualitative methodology and relies on semi-structured interviews with experienced and high-ranking women in the Kosovo Police. These interviews have focused on gaining insights into the working environment, gender sensitivity within security institutions, and the primary challenges faced by women in the sector. Additionally, we have conducted seven focus groups with women in the Kosovo Police who do not hold high-ranking positions. The aim is to analyze and comprehend the dynamics and factors that hinder women’s advancement to higher ranks within the Kosovo Police. These focus groups were organized in Prizren, Prishtina, Mitrovica, Gjilan, Gjakova, Ferizaj, and Peje. Through these focus groups, we have collected comprehensive information about the working environment and gender integration within the Kosovo Police.
Topic:
Security, Women, Legislation, Police, Integration, and Gender
Political Geography:
Eastern Europe and Kosovo

14. Factsheet: Vienna Forum on Countering Segregation and Extremism in the Context of Integration

Author:
Bridge Initiative Team
Publication Date:
02-2023
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Bridge Initiative, Georgetown University
Abstract:
The Vienna Forum on Countering Segregation and Extremism in the Context of Integration was initiated by Austrian Minister of Women and Integration Susanne Raab (ÖVP) to make Vienna “a center in the fight against political Islam.” Eleven European countries are part of the conference. Once a year, the forum brings together ministers and bureaucrats from several European countries alongside hundreds of terrorism and deradicalization experts, some of whom are known to advocate for policies that criminalize Muslim civil society.
Topic:
Islamophobia, Integration, Regional Organizations, and Susanne Raab
Political Geography:
Europe and Austria

15. Children in Refugee Camps and Their Role in Refugee–Host Community Integration

Author:
Erick Nyambedha, Rose Jaji, and Jana Kuhnt
Publication Date:
01-2023
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS)
Abstract:
The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child significantly strengthened the legal basis for recognising children as actors with agency and a voice. In contrast to this, children in displacement contexts are still commonly portrayed as victims without agency. Children are dependent on adults, but that does not mean that they have no right to participate in decisions that affect their lives. This policy brief sheds light on the active role that children in displacement situations can take in their daily lives to shape refugee–host interactions and local integration in camp settings. It discusses how the role of children in the social integration of refugees can be strengthened and supported, indicating potential areas for intervention. With 40 per cent of the displaced population worldwide being below the age of 18, children form a significant part of this group (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees [UNHCR], 2023). However, there continues to be limited information on the perspectives and experiences of children in displacement situations, particularly those living in the Global South. Although there is some knowledge regarding interventions to support the integration of refugee children, not much has been said about their own initiatives with respect to social integration and mediating the circumstances that displacement and encampment entail. Children change the world around them and invariably impact the adult-dominated processes of migration and integration when they participate. Independently from adults, children negotiate and construct relations during their interactions in public and private spaces, such as in (pre-)schools, organised sporting events and in private meeting points. They develop friendships and share learning materials, food and language. Through their agency, children build relations that are critical for the process of integration. This can transcend adult-dominated notions about the safety and securitisation of displacement contexts, thus transforming the conflict rhetoric associated with refugee–host community relations. The role of children has become even more salient in view of efforts to facilitate integration through the Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework (CRRF), a key framework guiding refugee policy in many refugee-hosting countries in the Global South. At the same time, children’s unique growth and developmental needs have to be adequately understood and incorporated into integration policies and programmes. In this policy brief, we call for a change in policy and pro¬gramming to recognise and support children’s critical role in social integration. We make the following recommendations to host governments, international agencies and local partners active in refugee camp settings to: • Support more data collection and analysis of children’s actions in building relations that can foster integration in different displacement contexts. • Ensure that children are included as a special category in policy frameworks. Their interests and needs should be taken into account by listening to their voices and providing platforms for exchanges with adults, policy-makers and practitioners. • Create more opportunities for refugee and host community children to interact inside and outside of school environments. • Support sensitisation programmes that bring together parents of refugee and host community children to understand the role of children in the integration process and to ensure that the views of adults as parents and guardians are also listened to and addressed. • Address negative stereotypes and open conflicts between refugee and host community children that restrict free and positive interactions. This can include fostering dialogue and peaceful means to resolve conflicts as well as facilitating cooperation.
Topic:
Children, Refugees, and Integration
Political Geography:
Global Focus

16. Improving Employment and Social Cohesion among Refugee and Host Communities through TVET: Evidence from an Impact Assessment in Ethiopia

Author:
Abis Getachew, Lisa Höckel, Jana Kuhnt, Abdirahman A. Muhumad, and Armin von Schiller
Publication Date:
01-2023
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS)
Abstract:
In pursuit of employment opportunities and increased productivity, governments and donors have the highest ambitions for technical and vocational education and training (TVET) systems. Most prominently, TVET is expected to facilitate access to employment and a qualified workforce by offering its graduates skills that the labour market demands. Beyond its employment impacts, TVET supporters also anticipate that it will improve societal outcomes such as inclusion, gender equality and social cohesion. Access to the labour market plays an essential role in allowing displaced populations to sustain their livelihoods and to foster socio-economic integration. Long-term displacement situations and a decline in resettlement opportunities have spurred the quest for local integration in countries of first asylum. It is in this context that TVET has gained additional salience in the past decade. Does TVET live up to these promises? Overall, systematic empirical evidence on the impact of TVET is limited and often inconsistent. In terms of employment and income, evidence suggests that there is a small positive effect, but time plays an important factor. Often, impacts are only seen in the medium- to long-term, and in general, programmes tend to work better for the long-term unemployed. Evidence of societal effects is even more limited; there is a large gap of knowledge on the potential social cohesion impacts of TVET. Given the amount of funding and the high expectations found in the policy discourse, it is essential to better understand if and how TVET measures contribute to achieving their self-declared goals. In this brief, we present the results of an accompanying research study of an inclusive TVET programme implemented by the German development cooperation organisation Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) in Ethiopia. In this programme, host and refugee participants are jointly trained, with the explicit goals of fostering social cohesion and improving employment opportunities. The results indicate that while the social cohesion effect seems remarkable on several dimensions, the income and employment effect is at best weak and materialises only for specific groups of individuals. Qualitative and quantitative evidence supports the validity of the approach to achieve social cohesion. More than design or implementation problems, the lack of stronger employment effects appears to be driven by structural context conditions like limited labour market absorption capacity, legal work permission constraints, gender barriers and similar hindering factors. We derive the following main recommendations from the analysis: TVET measures need a careful context analysis (including labour market capacities, legal work barriers) to ensure that the necessary conditions for TVET to succeed are in place. This is particularly relevant in terms of employment effects, which appear to be elusive. Inclusive TVET measures seem to be an effective tool to improve social cohesion. However, if social cohesion effects are valued not just as an “add-on” to employment effects but as primary goals, the question arises if alternative interventions might be more efficient. This question is particularly salient given the modest evidence regarding employment and income effects. The evidence base of the impact of (inclusive) TVET programmes needs to be expanded. Knowledge gaps that need to be closed include TVET’s impact on displaced populations, its potential societal effects, differential gender effects, and medium- to long-term employment and income effects.
Topic:
Development, Employment, Refugees, Integration, and Social Cohesion
Political Geography:
Africa and Ethiopia

17. Displaced Ukrainians in European Labor Markets: Leveraging Innovations for More Inclusive Integration

Author:
Maria Vincenza Desiderio and Kate Hooper
Publication Date:
05-2023
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Migration Policy Institute (MPI)
Abstract:
The war in Ukraine has led millions of displaced Ukrainians to seek protection in European countries since February 2022, and welcoming new arrivals has put enormous pressure on reception and integration systems. But with the right supports, displaced Ukrainians could also potentially help address some of Europe’s pervasive skill shortages. Many newcomers have a tertiary education, and the EU decision to activate the Temporary Protection Directive has provided swift access to clear residence and work rights. Early evidence suggests that displaced Ukrainians’ labor market entry is progressing well, with many working-age adults finding jobs. However, challenges such as language barriers, difficulties getting foreign credentials recognized, and trouble securing child care have limited some Ukrainians’ ability to enter the labor market and find a job commensurate with their skills. A desire among many to return to Ukraine, as circumstances allow, is also shaping their decisions about finding work and participating in integration and training programs. This report explores how displaced Ukrainians are faring in European labor markets, including what is known about their early labor market outcomes and the barriers they face when seeking work. It also examines how governments can work together with civil society and employers to help new arrivals find quality jobs and, in doing so, help European societies benefit from their skills.
Topic:
Education, Employment, Refugees, Innovation, Integration, Labor Market, and Immigration Policy
Political Geography:
Europe and Ukraine

18. Attracting, Retaining, and Diversifying Sponsors for Refugees in Community Sponsorship Programs

Author:
Maria Belen Zanzuchi, Nadja Dumann, Florian Tissot, and Admir Skodo
Publication Date:
09-2023
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Migration Policy Institute (MPI)
Abstract:
More countries in Europe and elsewhere are exploring the potential of sponsorship programs to open up another pathway for refugee protection and integration. This reflects recognition of both the staggering scale of unmet protection needs globally and the value of involving receiving communities more directly in welcoming and supporting refugee newcomers. The strength of these community sponsorship programs—and their ability to be sustained and scaled up over time—hinges on recruiting community members to volunteer their time and often some personal resources to support arriving refugees. This report examines the challenges sponsorship programs have faced to recruiting, retaining, and diversifying the sponsors involved in these efforts, as well as strategies that programs could and in some cases already use to overcome these obstacles. It highlights findings from surveys and interviews conducted in three case-study countries (Belgium, Germany, and Ireland) as well as evidence from other countries that operate sponsorship programs. This MPI Europe study is part of the Building Capacity for Private Sponsorship in the European Union (CAPS-EU) Project, which aims to build the capacity of European, national, and local governments and nongovernmental stakeholders to design, implement, sustain, and scale up community sponsorship programs for refugees.
Topic:
Refugees, Resettlement, Asylum, Integration, and Social Cohesion
Political Geography:
Europe and Global Focus

19. A Winding Path to Integration: Venezuelan Migrants’ Regularization and Labor Market Prospects

Author:
Diego Chaves-González and Natalia Delgado
Publication Date:
10-2023
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Migration Policy Institute (MPI)
Abstract:
The movement of more than 6 million Venezuelans to other countries in Latin America and the Caribbean has challenged the region’s governments to rethink how they manage mobility across their borders and the integration of immigrants within them. Many have launched programs to regularize Venezuelan newcomers. However, the status offered by regularization measures has varied enormously, including in terms of duration and the rights granted. These differences have had implications for Venezuelans’ ability to find work, access services, and plan for the future. This report examines how regularization efforts have affected Venezuelans’ labor market integration. It looks closely at the case of Colombia, which has received the most displaced Venezuelans and operated the region’s largest regularization program, as well as at other countries that make up the Quito Process, which has made Venezuelans’ socioeconomic integration a top priority. Among other sources, the study draws on interviews and focus groups with policy and regional experts, migrants, integration-focused organizations, and private-sector stakeholders. Topics explored include the impacts of granting short- versus long-term regular status, varying rates of labor market informality and labor enforcement, and the significant human capital Venezuelans have brought to many countries. The report also offers recommendations for countries as they continue to refine their strategies for granting Venezuelans regular status and fostering their integration.
Topic:
Development, Migration, Employment, Integration, Labor Market, and Skills
Political Geography:
Latin America and Venezuela

20. Different Global Contexts of the Confucius

Author:
Ademir Macedo Nascimento and Kerou Xu
Publication Date:
12-2023
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
AUSTRAL: Brazilian Journal of Strategy International Relations
Institution:
Postgraduate Program in International Strategic Studies, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul
Abstract:
The debate on the Confucius Institute provides a comprehensive view of observation that enriches the understanding of China on the international stage, as well as the stance and participation of other countries in the face of China's integration into the world. In order to analyze the current state of this subject, systematic review methods and procedures were adopted. 25 articles that contemplate the Confucius Institute's praxis in the main continents and countries: Africa, Asia and the USA, as well as comparisons with European language and culture institutions, were included in the reference of this study. As a result, it was possible to identify and summarize some trends; such as research scopes, recurring themes, theories and methodologies used, regional characteristics, successes and controversies.
Topic:
Research, Think Tanks, and Integration
Political Geography:
China and Asia