The Urban Agenda for the EU Partnership on Inclusion of Migrants and Refugees published its new action plan for the 2021-2022 period. The partnership, whose first phase run from 2016 to 2019, brings together cities, national governments, the European Commission (EC) and civil society organisations to discuss and put in place concrete actions to improve migrant integration in the EU. The action plan for the current second phase of the partnership is meant to consolidate past achievements while also addressing new challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic.

The document names seven actions conceived as big-picture interventions which, however, bring targeted measures to address specific vulnerabilities. The actions include:

1. Improving migrants’ and refugees’ access to healthcare, with a particular focus on the challenged exposed by the COVID-19 pandemic;
2. Improving the prevention, early identification, and treatment of mental health concerns among migrants and refugees;
3. Advancing the role of art and culture in promoting inclusion and fighting racism;
4. Promoting the inclusion and participation of LGBTQI+ migrants;
5. Facilitating evidence-based integration policymaking in cities;
6. Expanding the use of financial instruments for inclusion by cities;
7. Better protecting children in migration

Under each point, the document specifies the concrete objectives, implementation actions and timeline, as well as the responsible action leader and group members. The document also alludes to other recent guidelines, including the 2021-2027 Action Plan on Integration and Inclusion.

The City of Amsterdam and the EC's Directorate-General Migration and Home Affairs (DG HOME) continue to coordinate the Urban Agenda Partnership during this second phase. See more about the work of the EU on the local level here.