Information Report: The new challenges of integration

Key points

The European Union is facing a new phase in immigration and integration policies.

The EESC instructed the IMI study group to draw up this information report in order to facilitate the Forum's debates and contribute to the drawing-up of the new European integration agenda.

The implementation of a coordination system should form part of the integration agenda.

Integration is a social process of mutual adaptation in the complex social relationships between individuals and groups of people. These social processes should be backed up by good governance at different levels.

The common basic principles serve as a guide for the European integration strategy. The first common basic principle states that integration is a dynamic, two-way process of mutual accommodation between immigrants and the host society. The Committee endorses this approach.

The Committee considers that in the next few years, the European integration agenda should step up activities coming under principles 7 and 9, namely by encouraging more frequent interaction between immigrants and the general public in Member States, and making it easier for people of immigrant origin to participate in society.