MOSTAR, Bosnia and Hercegovina – The Migration, Asylum, Refugees Regional Initiative (MARRI) organised the first Regional Forum under the Bosnia and Herzegovina Presidency, which took place in Mostar on 9 November 2006. The MARRI Regional Forum provided an opportunity for MARRI Member States’ political directors to discuss current and future activities of MARRI in the framework of regional cooperation and regional ownership. View gallery    

ULCINJ, Montenegro – The MARRI Regional Centre and the Ministry of Interior of Montenegro organised a Workshop on Migration Management Systems in Ulcinj, Montenegro on 5-6 October 2006. This Workshop, which was financed by the German Federal Government, was opened by Mr. Jusuf Kalamperovic, Minister of Interior of the Republic of Montenegro. Aside from senior policy makers and national migration management experts from MARRI Member States (including Montenegro, the newest MARRI Member State), the participants included EU experts from Portugal

SKOPJE, Macedonia – The first Steering Group Meeting announcing the launch of the two-year Programme to Support the Development of Trans-national Referral Mechanisms (TRM) for Trafficked Persons in South-Eastern Europe was held at the MARRI Regional Centre in Skopje. The meeting was addressed by Mrs. Gordana Jankuloska, Minister of Interior of the Republic of Macedonia, who expressed support for this joint effort to fight trafficking in persons in South Eastern Europe. The Programme to Support the Development of Trans-national Referral

SARAJEVO, Bosnia and Hercegovina – The MARRI Regional Centre in Skopje, together with Budapest Process and in cooperation with Bosnia and Herzegovina Ministry of Foreign Affairs, organised a Workshop on Management of Irregular Transit Migration in the MARRI Region in Sarajevo on 29-30 June 2006. The mentioned Workshop provided an opportunity for the MARRI MS to identify the needs and gaps in regional cooperation in the field of combating irregular transit migration. This gathering provided a good opportunity to increase

SKOPJE, Macedonia – The MARRI Regional Centre in Skopje organised a Workshop on Technical Aspects of Implementation of Readmission Agreements in Skopje on 15-16 June 2006. The objective of the workshop was to identify the gaps and needs of the MARRI Member States’ institutions involved in managing technical aspects of implementation of readmission agreements and to enhance regional co-operation mechanisms in accordance with international standards. The Workshop gathered officials and experts from MARRI Member States and representatives of international organisations

BELGRADE, Serbia – The MARRI Ministerial Regional Forum was held in Belgrade on 7 April 2006, where  Serbia and Montenegro concluded its year-long Presidency in the framework of MARRI (Migration, Asylum and Refugee Regional Initiative). This meeting gathered regional interior ministers and high state representatives responsible for issues of migration, asylum and refugees of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia and Serbia and Montenegro, while the participants included representatives of five MARRI Member States, Austria, Denmark, France, Germany, Sweden, European

BELGRADE, Serbia – Further to the preparation of the Ministerial MARRI Regional Forum, to be held on 7 April 2006 in Belgrade, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Serbia and Montenegro organised a preparatory meeting of Senior Officials dealing with the migration, asylum and refugees issues in the five MARRI Member States. The preparatory meeting gave an opportunity for the representatives of the MARRI Member States to discuss and prepare the main documents on the initiative; namely, the draft guidelines

SKOPJE, Macedonia – The MARRI Regional Centre in Skopje organised a second meeting of the Regional Working Group on Consular Cooperation (RWGCC) on 22-23 February 2006. The overall objective of the meeting was to discuss and adopt the plan of activities in the field of consular cooperation for 2006. The participants were representatives of the Consular Departments of the MARRI Member States, who followed-up on the first Meeting of the RWGCC held in Skopje on 13-14 September 2005.

ZAGREB, Croatia – The Workshop on Labour Migration for Integration and Development in Western Balkans was held in Zagreb on 22-24 February 2006. This event was organised by the Migration Asylum and Refugees Regional Initiative (MARRI), in close cooperation with the International Organization for Migration (IOM), and funded by the Government of the United Kingdom. It gathered representatives from the Governments of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro, while presentations were held by IOM, UK and regional

PODGORICA, Montenegro – The MARRI Regional Centre in Skopje, together with the Ministry of Interior of Montenegro, organised the first National Round Table on Migration (NRTM) meeting in Podgorica on 20 February 2006. The National Round Table on Migration aims to assist in the creation of the national working groups on migration in the five countries of the region, which should be a basis for a regional approach to the migration issues. The next step is the creation of a