On 23 April 2018, the Special Representative published the report of his fact-finding mission to Bulgaria. The SRSG recognised the efforts made by Bulgaria to cope with the challenges of a high number of arrivals of migrants and refugees, but highlights concerns about difficulties they face in entering into Bulgarian territory, notably at the border with Turkey, and in accessing international protection. “Bulgaria has made significant progress in enrolling refugee children in schools; however, the social inclusion of migrants and refugees in local communities is slow due to the fact that municipalities’ responsibilities are not mandatory, as well as a generally negative public attitude towards migrants and refugees”, the Special Representative said. Further, he stressed that Bulgaria should put in place a functioning system of age-assessment and guardianship for unaccompanied refugee and migrant children and recommended addressing issues such as the lack of information available to asylum-seekers about their rights, the lack of interpretation and legal aid during the status determination procedures.

On 15 May 2018, the Council of Europe Coordination Group on Migration held its first meeting. The Group, which operates under the stewardship of the Special Representative, is a platform for joint and complementary action of the secretariats of relevant Council of Europe bodies and services. Its aims are to ensure a coherent and holistic approach of all migration-related activities of the Organisation and to identify strategic priorities for the future.

The Office of the Special Representative on migration and refugees (SRSG) is looking for up to four experts to work with the office on a compilation of good practices on migration-related child-friendly procedures. The examples will facilitate states’ implementation of their obligations in respect of migration-related procedures involving children and will thus encourage the modification of procedures to make them more child-friendly. This compilation is being prepared under the Council of Europe Action plan on protecting refugee and migrant children (2017-2019). Please see the Call for Expression of Interest and the Terms of Reference for more information. The deadline for tenders is midnight (French time) on 15 June 2018.