The problem

The EU’s Member States, particularly those of western Europe, are a constant economic attraction for migrants from non-union countries. There is very little detailed information on the numbers or origins of these migrants with which to develop and implement appropriate policies. If social and economic benefits are to be maximised and potential difficulties minimised, there is a pressing need for more reliable information.

Overview:

CLANDESTINO will collate data on undocumented migration from selected EU countries. It will carry out a comparative analysis of these data, and review the ethical and methodological issues involved in data collection, elaboration and use. The project will then propose new methods for evaluating and classifying undocumented migration in the Union. The project will focus on a representative range of west European destination countries and key transit countries en route to the EU, notably Turkey, Ukraine and one Maghreb country. CLANDESTINO will also consider factors affecting the shift between legal and undocumented status among migrant populations.

Contribution to policy development:

• CLANDESTINO will improve the quality of information and understanding of undocumented migration to and between selected EU Member States.
• The project will improve the quality of information on the effect of undocumented migration on labour markets and economic growth; crime, public order and citizens’ sense of security; the management of legal migration and asylum.
• CLANDESTINO will develop recommendations for an ethical policy for managing undocumented migration.
• The project will enhance working relationships and information flow between academics who study the problem and the policy-makers who need to manage it.

Project deliverables

• Reports on undocumented migration by EU nation and transit migration in three neighbouring countries – July 2008
• Annual project progress assessment – August 2008
• Overview of undocumented transit migration to Europe – September 2008
• Reports on the ethical issues surrounding migration and a comparative review of undocumented migration – March 2009
• Project conclusions and policy recommendations – August 2009

Dissemination

• Scheduled programme of visits and meetings between project partners and national policy-makers – throughout project
• Five national or regional workshops to facilitate local involvement in comparison of different approaches and developing alternative policy options
• Project website with regular updates, targeted press releases and policy briefings – ongoing
• All appropriate findings and novel policy ideas to be presented at conferences and submitted for publication in peer reviewed journals – as needed

Technical information

Project acronym: CLANDESTINO
Project’s official full title: Undocumented Migration: Counting the UncountableData and Trends Across Europe
Research priority: 2.5. Comparative research of factors underlying migration and refugee flows, including illegal immigration and trafficking in human beings
Specific webpage: Details not yet available
Proposal/contract no: 044130
Start date: 1 September 2007
Kick off meeting: September 2007
Completion date: 31 August 2009
European Commission scientific officer: Giulia Amaducci, Giulia.amaducci@ec.europa.eu

Coordinator: 
Dr Anna Triandafyllidou
Name: Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy 
Abbreviated name: ELIAMEP
Address: 12 Patroklou
26442, Patras
Country: Greece
Tel: +30 210 725 71 10-1
Fax: +30 2610 454964
E-mail: eliamep@eliamep.gr
Website: http://www.eliamep.gr

Partners

Name: Centre for International Relations
Abbreviated name: CIR PL
Country: Poland 

Name: Hamburg Institute of International Economics
Abbreviated name: HWWI
Country: Germany         

Name: University of Oxford Centre on Migration, Policy and Society
Abbreviated name: COMPAS
Country: UK  

Name: International Centre for Migration Policy Development
Abbreviated name: ICMPD
Country: Austria

Name: Platform for International Co-operation on Undocumented Migrants
Abbreviated name: PICUM
Country: Belgium