Mandate

The Division on Migration and Refugees (DMR) was created at the Directorate General of Human Rights and Rule of Law (DG1) on 1 February 2025 to follow-up on the action by the former Special Representative of the Secretary General on Migration and Refugees. Its mandate includes suggesting assistance and support to member states, particularly through the Network of Focal Points on Migration, seeking, collecting and analysing information on the human rights situation of migrants and refugees, as well as complementing and co-ordinating activities of other relevant Council of Europe bodies and our action with other international partners, notably the UNHCR, IOM, EU, and its specialised agencies, and other national, regional and international stakeholders, including civil society organisations. The DMR represents the Council of Europe in the UNHCR Nansen Refugee Award Selection Committee, as well as in the Consultative Forums of Frontex and of EUAA.

Back New phase “European Qualifications Passport for Refugees”: assessment sessions in Greece and Italy

New phase “European Qualifications Passport for Refugees”: assessment sessions in Greece and Italy

On 11-15 June 2018, in Athens, Greece, in the context of the new phase (2018-2020) of the project “European Qualifications Passport for Refugees” (EQPR), 48 refugees, from 12 different countries, had their qualifications assessed during the first evaluation session. The refugees were interviewed by credentials evaluators from the national recognition centres (ENICs) of Germany, Greece, the Netherlands and Norway. ENICs of nine countries: Armenia, Canada, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway and the UK participate in this new phase of the project. Other partners include the Greek Ministry of Education, Research and Religious Affairs, the Italian Ministry of Education, Universities and Research and the Conference of University Rectors of Italy. The UNHCR and the Norwegian Ministry of Education also support the project.

On 2-6 July 2018, a second assessment session was held in Sardinia, Italy. 42 refugees were interviewed by credentials evaluators from the national recognition centres (ENIC/NARICs) of Armenia, France, Germany, Italy and Norway and of the universities of Cagliari and Sassari.

A total of 90 interviews have been made this year, resulting in 54 passports issued so far, as the final assessment of the candidates interviewed in Sassari is still on-going. In this phase, online technologies will be used in a greater extent for interviews, applications, and for checking the validity of the document sent to the employers, local authorities or education institutions.

“I’m confident that this project will be instrumental in ensuring that refugees can have their skills and qualifications recognised thereby allowing them to contribute to their new host societies through further education and employment”, said Tomáš Boček, the Special Representative of the Secretary General on Migration and Refugees in a video message.

The EQPR is one of the initiatives supported by the Council of Europe Action Plan on Protecting Refugee and Migrant Children in Europe (2017-2019). The aim of the Action Plan is to support member states in developing and implementing strategies that address the challenges and issues faced by refugee and migrant children. The EQPR is an initiative that contributes to the Action Plan’s objective of ensuring that refugee and migrant children are provided with an education.

EDUCATION DEPARTMENT
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