Today the NPO sector is developing fast in a number of European countries, particularly in the Netherlands, Great Britain, Belgium, Spain, Germany and is actively supported by the governments because public organizations can outsource part of important social obligations of the state and fulfill them more effectively than governmental structures.
The potential advantage of practically all local NPOs over governmental agencies is above all in their better availability to the population, their proximity to it and therefore better capability to understand the problems and needs of different social groups.
Today the NPO sector is developing fast in a number of European countries, particularly in the Netherlands, Great Britain, Belgium, Spain, Germany and is actively supported by the governments because public organizations can outsource part of important social obligations of the state and fulfill them more effectively than governmental structures.
The potential advantage of practically all local NPOs over governmental agencies is above all in their better availability to the population, their proximity to it and therefore better capability to understand the problems and needs of different social groups. Hence, it’s necessary to underscore that outsourcing some of its functions to NPOs the state retains its dominant role in decision-making.
In the 90-s the deepening of a welfare state crisis as a result of globalization became a strong impetus for the NPO development in Europe. Currently, with such new challenges as mass migration and financial crisis in place, NPOs have started to actively reach out to other spheres of traditional responsibility of a state, migration policy in particular.
Integration as an inherent part of German migration policy
As a result of constant immigration to Germany over recent 50 years about 16 million immigrants’ ascendants which makes 19% of the whole population live now in the country. Nine million of them have German citizenship, 6.7 m are foreigners. However, despite great migration flows Germany continues to suffer from sharp deficit of skilled labor force, especially engineers, programmers and doctors. German authorities in an attempt to make up a deficiency of qualified specialists have to attract labor force from the third countries. It entails the necessity to ease the immigration procedures and to take measures on facilitation of immigrants’ integration in German society.
In 2000s the Federal Government carried out a number of important reforms in the field of migration regulation. With enacting a new Law on Immigration (2005) the regulation of migration processes in the Federal Republic of Germany has acquired a more systemic nature. The establishment in 2005 of the Federal Agency on Migration and Refugees which took upon the main functions of migration policy implementation has also played a significant role.
In conformity with the new Law on Immigration Germany officially acknowledged its “immigration country” status. Starting from 2006 upon the initiative of the Federal Chancellor Angela Merkel Germany has been annually holding “integration summits” with an active participation of public organizations and migrants themselves. The main objective of these summits is to establish a dialogue with immigrants and involve the civil society in the process of immigrants’ integration.
From the “integration plan” to concrete actions
On July 12, 2007 the second “integration summit” adopted National Integration Plan. It represents a concept of immigrants’ integration which outlines ten major provisions of the integration policy developed in Germany including the creation of a network of integration courses, the German language training, better employment opportunities for immigrants, improvement of women-immigrants’ living standards, promotion of equality and cultural diversity, integration through social inclusion, sport and science, etc.
On November 3, 2010 the fourth “integration summit” took the decision to develop “an action plan” based on specific provisions of the “integration plan”, and already at the next summit on January 31, 2012 it was formally adopted. The “action plan” defines the aims and goals of immigrants’ integration, outlines the timetable of events and assigns the organizations responsible for their realization. Among them are the following German non-profit migration organizations:
The new document lays the focus on migrants employed in civil service (teachers, policemen, etc.), or the members of public organizations who are supposed in everyday life to play the role of “bridges” between migrants and the hosting society.
Migrants as “bridge-builders”
Until recently migrant organizations have been practically excluded from the integration policy framework because of the concerns about the negative effect of the segregation of immigrants creating their own structures. However, with the Federal Government strategy aimed at “cross-cultural opening up of all services and agencies of the hosting society for immigrants” in place, the attitude toward migrant organizations has changed dramatically. Today they are viewed by the authorities as civil and social partners, “bridge-builders”, whose potential should be used and further developed.
The state is actively supporting and fostering the cooperation between the established German civil institutions and immigrants’ organizations in order to carry out joint integration projects, the so-called “tandem-projects”, on the ground. For example, over the period from 2009 to 2011 the Federal Agency on Migration and Refugees has initiated both at a federal level and on the ground 15 pilot projects and “tandem-partnerships” aimed at fostering social inclusion of immigrants and the development of voluntary initiatives by immigrants themselves.
“Project approach” to the policy of immigrants’ integration
Over the last few years the intensification of NPOs’ activities in migration sphere has facilitated the transition from the state’s targeted support of the most problematic categories of immigrants to the “project approach” in Germany, for a long time regarded as “a model welfare state”. An important peculiarity of this approach based on a systemic support and comprehensive resolution of immigrants’ integration problems is that it takes into account the interests of all layers of society, involved through NPOs in the development and realization of the migration policy. Besides, the engagement of NPOs in the process of immigrants’ integration significantly reduces the risks related to immigrants’ integration and ensures social solidarity in German society.
The list of NPOs participating in integration process is pretty long and includes different foundations, charity organizations, churches, religious communities, migrant associations, trade unions and other non-profit organizations.
Direct participation of NPOs in the process of immigrants’ integration manifests itself in two forms. Firstly, they represent and protect immigrants’ interests, and in this regard can be viewed as an instrument which provides to immigrants access to decision-making at all levels – local, regional and federal. Secondly, NPOs are a unique source of information, analytics and expertise for decision-makers. Such German foundations as Otto Behneke Foundation, Mercator Foundation, “Citizens for Citizens” Foundation, Robert Bosch Foundation and Bertelsmann Foundation provide invaluable expertise on migration.
The year of 2010 saw the realization of 400 different projects specially tailored for youth and embracing all age categories of migrants. Various foundations and German public associations as well as land and communal authorities participated in these events. Government organization expenses amounted to 20 m Euros. In particular, the Federal Agency on Migration and Refugees allocated 14 m Euros while the Federal Agency on Family, Senior People, Women and Youth spent more than 6 m Euros.
Federal Agency on Migration and Refugees, for example, provides for an integration course compulsory for all newly arriving immigrants. Besides, it constantly monitors best integration practices, NPOs set up on the ground with the support of the Federal Government with a view to promoting best practices at a federal level. The Agency annually publishes a collection of integration projects containing all the details of the best practices. Thus, in 2010 alone 244 projects got financing from the federal budget, 143 of them were carried out in the field of the population’ social inclusion, 19 – in the field of cross-cultural competences development, 37 – in drug-abuse, violence and crime combating, 18 – in promoting immigrants’ inherent competences, 27 – in developing the parents’ child up-bringing skills. Out of this variety of NPOs’ projects only 29 were recognized best practices.
A lesson for Russia to learn
A network of human rights protection and expert non-profit organizations (NPO) dealing with migration problems is gradually being formed in Russia. Among them are Non-profit partnership “International Alliance “Labor migration”, “Tajikistan” Foundation, “Memorial” Foundation, Non-profit partnership “The Association of the Entrepreneurial Organizations of Russia (OPORA)”, the Center for Economic and Financial Studies and Developments (CEFSD) with the Russian Economic School, the Center for Migration Studies to name but a few.
As the international experience suggests, an effective activity of these organizations could significantly reduce social risks of migration processes. That said, currently in Russia the state is giving disproportionally more attention to the development of socially oriented NPOs. The NPOs focused on the problems of migration regulation albeit they are in fact also socially oriented do not get state assistance within the framework of the Federal Program of NPO Support realization.
However, it’s obvious that in their activities they need not only state investments but also a clearly formulated migration policy meeting present-day requirements of the country’s development, encouraging immigration and creating conditions for the integration of highly skilled specialists.
