CONCEPT NOTE
Roundtable Themes for the Civil Society Days
Global Forum on Migration and Development
Athens, 2-3 November 2009
ROUNDTABLE 1: HOW TO MAKE THE MIGRATION-DEVELOPMENT NEXUS WORK
FOR THE ACHIEVEMENT OF THE MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS................ 2
ROUNDTABLE 2: MIGRANT INTEGRATION, REINTEGRATION AND CIRCULATION
FOR DEVELOPMENT................................................................................................................. 5
ROUNDTABLE 3: POLICY AND INSTITUTIONAL COHERENCE PARTNERSHIPS .... 11
Document circulated: 1 June 2009
Organising Committee, CSD Athens 2009
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Roundtable 1: How to make the migration-development nexus work for the
achievement of the Millennium Development Goals
Roundtable Discussion 1: How to make the migration and development nexus work for
development?
Setting the scene for the discussion (background)
a. The relationship between migration and development is rich and multi-faceted. The
migration-development nexus involves more stakeholders than is usually thought, given
that the standard approach focuses on migration’s interlinkages with development in
developing countries alone. This is an important part of the story, but not the whole story;
of equal importance is to stress the contribution of migrants in industrialized countries.
b. Complex as it might be, the development-migration relationship could be more usefully
addressed if migration policies in destination countries take development into account
rather than vice versa. To do so, other policy areas have to enter the scene (primarily
trade policy, as well as health services). The idea is that if migration is part of a win-win
strategy it will generate considerable value-added. This value added leads to equity and
efficiency arguments for spreading the benefits to poorer non-participating countries in
the form of development aid.
c. The link of the two aspects of the migration-development dynamics becomes more
pertinent in the face of the current economic recession. Given the breadth and the
intensity of the crisis, it is not yet clear how it is going to affect global migration in the
medium- and in the long-term. Increasing unemployment in destination countries may
trigger revisions in migration policies. At the same time, it is likely that declining
remittances and slowing down direct foreign investment will jointly negatively affect
origin countries. While it is unclear whether the downturn will fuel return migration, the
bleak general economic outlook and shrinking export demand trigger insecurity that
could translate into tensions, migrants’ stigmatization and other “defensive measures”
that run the risk of exacerbating rather than alleviating the impact of the crisis.
Session 1.1. Migration and Development: key actors and strategies for win-win solutions
Integrating migration policies into development strategies is a tall order. There exist differences
both in rationale and in time frames governing migration and development initiatives. While the
latter tend to reflect broad principles and longer-term commitment to clearly stated objectives,
the former (especially in the case of labor migration) tend to be market-oriented, time-sensitive
and less explicitly spelt out. The connection, nevertheless, could be made successfully, so as to
ensure that migration and migrants can be a resource for development in countries of origin and
destination, while development considerations become more systematically included in
migration policies.
Main Issues:
• How to spread the benefits of migration more widely… (source countries)
It is important to facilitate the spread of the benefits of migration more widely so
as to include the poorest of the poor, as well
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Appropriate interventions of a tangible (schools and infrastructure) and also of an
intangible nature (opportunities for more trade).
• Which policies are better suited to strengthen and foster the sharing of the benefits of
human development? (destination countries)
Do temporary migration programs tend to be part of the solution or part of
the problem?
Could facilitation of dual citizenship be seen as a tool generating greater
development benefits than temporary migration initiatives?
Are integration in the country of residence and contribution in the country
of origin contradictory or mutually reinforcing?
• How to ensure that migration policies are gender-sensitive (to women’s and men’s needs)
(source and destination countries)
Special emphasis on girls’ education as a means of eradicating extreme poverty.
Promotion of the idea that the migration and development nexus is not only about
individuals but also about families.
Session 1.2. Engaging diasporas and migrants in development policies and programs
(constraints and opportunities).
Diaspora contribution to development is a resource which requires enabling conditions,
incentives and facilitating actions, both at the local and the global level, involving home
countries, the international community and donor organizations, as well as some enabling
initiatives in destination countries. Both origin and destination countries have much to gain from
the energy, the experience, the reservoirs of trust, the detailed knowledge and the specific ideas
of migrant communities at home and abroad. The above constitute crucial inputs to sustainable
development whose significance can hardly be overstated. At the same time they raise issues of
considerable complexity that cannot be dealt with at the level of any single organization, agency
or approach. Partnerships need to be developed (and actively encouraged on behalf of
governments on both sides of the migration route) including the existing diaspora NGOs on the
ground, together with international NGOs, UN Agencies, other NGOs, academia and think tanks.
Main issues:
• Singling out challenges and opportunities involved in engaging diasporas and migrant
communities in development initiatives. In particular:
Identifying successful instances of diaspora and migrant engagement for
development as well as
Highlighting institutional mechanisms and attitudes that tend to be conducive to
the inclusion of diaspora and migrants communities in development partnerships
• Identifying expectations and “ideal wish-lists” of diaspora and migrants communities
towards home country governments and international actors, as well as good practices
initiated and/or encouraged by destination country actors (including governments).
• Illuminating the potential contribution on the part of the international donor community
to enhancing the development capacity of diasporas
via technical assistance and programming,
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via the promotion of enabling environment
as well as via intermediating between home and destination governments and
diaspora groups)
Session 1.3.: Maintaining a win-win migration and development relationship during the
economic crisis.
The current recession (expected to be the worst in a generation) is going to affect the situation of
migrants, the global migration movements and patterns, and migration policies. Its impact is
likely to be different from past recessions, as the current downturn is more severe in sectors that
hire relatively more migrant workers (residential construction, light manufacturing, and travelrelated
services). It appears unlikely that migrants in advanced economies are going to return in
great numbers as a result of the crisis (because they have invested large sums of money to
migrate, because their irregular status creates severe barriers, and because economic prospects at
home remain dim). Vulnerability though is likely to increase. Thus, it is important that the
interests and needs of migrants become integrated into policy responses aimed at economic
recovery (e.g., anti-protectionism measures, stimulation of international trade, need for capital
and credit etc.). Just as protectionism in trade needs to be avoided, so should protectionism in
human mobility be resisted, as migrants and migration – and indeed human mobility – may be
part of the solution, not the problem.
Main issues:
In both advanced and developing countries, civil society groups (alongside governments)
need to work in order to ensure that migrant rights are not eroded. In particular, emphasis
should be placed in safeguarding the rights of women and children, and also refugees’
rights.
In developed countries civil society groups need to challenge the stigmatization of
migrants and promote awareness of the fact that migration can be a positive force in
alleviating various aspects of the economic crisis.
In developing countries there is a risk that migrants may be less able to find jobs, leading
to increasing insecurity. Governments and Development NGOs should aim to provide
social protection, access to services and training opportunities.
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Roundtable 2: Migrant integration, reintegration and circulation for
development
Background
Both scholarly and policy debates of the last three decades have paid increasing attention to the
question of immigrant integration highlighting the fact that integration is a mutual process that
requires efforts and adjustments not only by immigrants but also by their societies of settlement.
The aim of this Roundtable is to carry the academic and policy debate a step further by seeking
to assess the development impact and potential of specific dimensions of migrant integration
policies. Here development is understood as human development encompassing not only
economic but also social and cultural aspects of people’s lives and activities.
Session 2.1: Inclusion, protection and acceptance of migrants in society – linking human
rights and migrant empowerment for development.
We have identified the following policy sectors that are related to migrant inclusion, protection
and acceptance, empowering migrants and helping them contribute to development in both their
source and destination country:
• labour market insertion policies including skills recognition, language training;
• policies favouring long term settlement and multi-cultural integration;
• policies for the education of the children of migrants, valorizing their cultural capital and
taking into account their special needs, if any;
• health policies addressing in particular the needs of migrants and their families;
• policies of housing and urban planning fostering migrant integration and civic
participation into their localities of residence.
The challenge for this Roundtable is to identify in concrete and policy-relevant ways how
migrant integration fosters development in the country of settlement and in the country of origin.
More specifically, our aim is to identify how specific policy measures address specific ‘gaps’ of
integration and multiply the development potential of migrant workers and their families, within
their communities of settlement, and in relation to their localities and countries of origin.
Furthermore, it is our aim to identify civil society initiatives and best practices that contribute to
migrant empowerment for development.
Proposed themes to be discussed at the CSD:
What does integration mean for different types of migrants: temporary migrants (e.g. with
stay of up to 1 year), circular migrants (with repeated stays of several months or more), medium
term migrants (up to 5 years), long term migrants (5 years or more).
• What policies should be foreseen and in which sectors of those identified above for each
type of migrants?
• What is a minimal safety net: a set of minimum integration conditions that should be
foreseen for the temporary migrants in unstable and often semi-declared work (e.g.
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without overtime pay or without weekend pay)? These conditions should be guaranteed at
all times but assume special importance at times of economic instability and crisis.
• Civil society contributions are very useful here in highlighting the processes and
experiences pertaining to different types of migrants and different forms of migration.
They are also important in highlighting what the minimal set of conditions and the more
advanced level of integration should consist of.
• An interesting example is provided in this respect if one considers the integration
indicators examined at the European MIPEX (Migrant Integration Policy Index) – several
of the indicators of integration assessed in this Index are valid for both temporary and
long term migrants.
What is exactly the relationship between migration integration and development for
different types of migrants?
At times when circular migration forms are developing, we need to inquire about whether and
how these new forms of migration impact on integration models and policies (e.g. the need arises
for education policies to accommodate for children who are only temporarily present in the
country’s territory).
Civil society contributions can be crucial here as they can provide information on best practices
and concrete examples that illustrate the nexus helping policy makers shape the appropriate
policies.
The gender dimension of migrant empowerment and its effects on development issues.
What are the special needs but also the special potential of women, both when migrating as
members of a family, but also when they migrate as main breadwinners leaving their families
(including their spouses) behind.
What policies are needed to protect women from both racial/ethnic and gender discrimination in
the labour market and to ensure their equal treatment in labour market and more generally in
social and cultural integration?
There is a need to highlight how the empowerment of women migrants is a factor contributing
not only to economic growth but also to human and socio-economic development in its broader
sense: The empowerment of women migrants has direct effects to (a) the economic function of
the household in the destination country, (b) the integration of children into the destination
country and their education prospects, (c) the development of women as not only economic
actors but also as active citizens/participants in their societies of settlement.
Special emphasis is required here to best practices and projects initiated by CS actors or indeed
governments targeting women migrants that have had a positive impact not only on the specific
women and their families but also in their wider communities of settlement? It is important to
draw ideas from such best practices for policy development in the field of migrant empowerment
for development.
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Special attention needs to be paid to specific categories of women migrants such as domestic
workers, both live-in and live-out employees as they suffer from multiple types of vulnerability
(limited contact with host society, complete dependency from employers, often informal
conditions of work, risk of abuse, etc.)
Session 2.2: Reintegration and circular migration – effective for development?
Circular migration has been singled out recently by both national governments and international
organizations (including transnational organizations like the EU) as one possible option that
could maximise the benefits of economic migration and minimise its costs. Circular migration
patterns are thought to avoid brain drain for source countries, encourage brain circulation and
investment back in the country of origin of social capital (in the form of communication skills
and social networks suitable for developing business opportunities), human capital (knowledge
and professional skills) and economic capital (investments that circular migrants do in their
source country).
Circular migration is seen by some governments as more readily acceptable by their national
constituencies that may be wary of the long term burden of integrating migrants not only in the
labour market but also at the social and cultural level. It is also considered to respond best to
rapidly changing economic cycles, allowing thus for migrant workers to leave a destination
country when a work opportunity is no longer available with the promise that they will be readily
able to return to that country when job prospects improve again. In other words, circular
migration patterns are seen also as a safeguard towards legal migration, discouraging people
from engaging into irregular migration.
Circular migration is thought to promote business and trade development as well as cultural
exchange between sending and receiving regions. Circular migrants are expected to make
productive use of their remittances since they continue to have a stake in their country of origin
so they are believed to be more likely to invest in education and/or in business and technical
equipment for instance rather than in mere consumption needs.
The dynamics and realities of circular migration have been researched sporadically since the late
1990s. Little attention has been paid however so far to the links between circular migration and
integration (in the destination country) and re-integration (in the country of origin, upon return,
be the return periodic or a one-off event). Integration has generally been associated with long
term settlement. Both academic and policy developments in this field see integration as the end
process of migration (the migrant settling for good in the destination country). There has been
little research so far on whether and how integration can also be a concept and a policy that is
related to circular mobility.
Within the wider field of research on remittances and the re-integration of migrants if and when
they go back to the country of origin, there has been consideration as to what are the
preconditions for returning migrants to become actors for development. Related research has
suggested that sending country governments have an important part to play in this respect by
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building on infrastructure and creating the necessary capacity so that returning migrants can
make use of their savings and the skills they acquired in the destination county to set up
businesses, to promote innovation and generally to maximize the profit of their migration.
Indeed, the lack of any re-integration policies can be detrimental to the returning migrant and
her/his family and also to the source country as returning migrants may in a way also disrupt any
development efforts the source country is trying to build.
Overall, circular migration and its effects on development is a new field for research and policy
development. There needs to be more research and discussion between policy makers and civil
society actors as to what are the conditions that would favour circular migration as a factor of
development.
Proposed themes to be discussed at CSD
What are the different types of circular migration: circular migration of a shuttle nature (a
few months stay and back and forth movements), circular migration involving a recurrent
seasonal pattern (typical of work in agriculture or tourism), circular migration that involves a
longer than 12 month stay in the destination country and return to the source country that may
also be long term.
How can these different types of circular migration contribute to development of both source and
destination countries?
What are the necessary policies/legal schemes for promoting circular migration? (For instance
transfer of pension rights for people that have only worked for a few years in a given destination
country.)
How does circular migration differ from conditional mobility?
Circular migration needs to take into account the wishes and needs of all parties involved,
notably of
- the migrant her/himself and her/his family (the family may be located in the source
country or have moved together with the family leader – the family leader may be a
woman too not only a man);
- the destination country (and the wish to tame labour migration to the swings of the labour
market);
- the source country (and the wish/need to use circular migration for national development
purposes).
Circular vs. long-term migration: advantages and disadvantages from the employers’ point
of view: There is variation in the patterns of migration depending on whether migrants come
from a country that is geographically close or more distant. The closer the country the more
possible the circular movement, the farther the country the more a prospective of settlement is
necessary. Employers are in favour of at least some long term immigration as this provides for a
suitable pool of labour from which to recruit when in need. Short term circular/temporary
migration may be a good option only for construction or agriculture, where language skills are
less important. In other jobs, even low-skill ones, the lack of language skills of
temporary/circular migrants makes them unemployable. The relationship between older
immigrants that have naturalised and that have trouble integrating in the labour market, and new
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immigrants is a delicate one. Employers and government can do more to ensure that they employ
immigrants who are already in the country before they recruit from abroad. Overall employers,
especially large corporations, and employer associations need to be involved with government in
the planning of migration policy so that the concerns raised above are taken into account. These
concerns are important for the development of the destination country but also for the human
development of the migrant her/himself and her/his family.
Issues of recruitment
Direct recruitment: Migrant labour recruitment needs and potential varies depending on the
size of business: large, vs. small/medium enterprises (SME), vs. global supply chains. The first
and the last are more open to a multi-ethnic labour force and have better recruitment channels,
SMEs are less open and are often at a loss when short of labour force, on where to find migrant
labourers. It should be noted that migrants bring migrants. Migrant employees are the best
sources of information when needing to recruit more migrant workers because they are immersed
in their networks and communities and can give good advice
Indirect recruitment: Sub contractors are an issue for all sectors. Subcontractors often work by
their own rules violating labour law and hence creating unfair competition to larger and law
abiding companies. The more levels of mediation there are between hiring the worker and
getting the job done, the less transparency there is. Businesses have an understanding about the
vulnerability of migrant workers but do not have sufficient knowledge on how to go about
protecting migrant workers’ rights and improving their living and working conditions. Ideas on
how to raise business awareness on the importance of protecting migrants’ rights so that migrant
workers can be more effective in their jobs.
What does re-integration mean for the migrant? What are the prerequisites for effective and
meaningful reintegration that prevents the returning migrant (and her/his family) from falling
back to a condition of increased social and financial vulnerability? What is the role of destination
countries in cooperation with the source countries to ensure effective re-integration? What are
best practices in this domain promoted by NGOs. And how can NGOs build here an active role
as agents for development.
There is a need for concrete examples of reintegration policies from different countries across the
globe (e.g. Albanian, Senegal, Jamaica, etc.) that would highlight what works and what does not.
It is important also to find out more about the consequences of the absence of re-integration
schemes. What happens where there are no re-integration policies for returning migrants? Civil
society can contribute with findings, examples and policy proposals.
Skills and Training: Important questions that need to be addressed jointly by source and
destination countries taking also into account the interest of business who are migrants’
employers include:
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- Skills’ recognition and skills transferability (credentialing as some call it) – the issue of
brain waste: how can it be tackled in cooperation between countries of destination and
countries of origin?
- Employers who employ a large percentage of migrant workers note that generally these
are to be found in the lower end of the hierarchy scale. However, overall business
experience with migrant workers in several developed countries is positive and the
business attitude towards migration is also positive (by contrast often to public opinion
and politicians who may be much more migration-worried and hostile to the idea of
fellow migrant workers). This view of employers and their positive experiences need to
be taken into account when assessing the impact of migration on the labour market.
Employers’ views and best practices they may have adopted need to be incorporated in
policy planning.
- The importance of language skills cannot be underestimated – from the employer’s
perspective and from the migrant worker’s perspective (upwards economic and
professional mobility, social integration)
- How can source and destination countries cooperate with a view to developing
appropriate training and language programs so that there is a better match of skills and
offer-demand of labour force to the benefit of all (migrants and their families, employers,
source and destination countries). Can we identify best practices in this domain?
Education planning is part of the overall development planning of a country and as such
it is of crucial importance for both migration and development.
- What is the role that employers can play here by providing for training and education in
source countries with concrete options for employment in destination countries for those
who attend the training (e.g. shipping industry but not only)
- Ideas and Best Practices on how to mitigate brain drain and brain waste. Is circular
migration partly a response to brain drain?
Civil society actors and large business in particular can act as educators/training institutions, they
can facilitate communication and cooperation between source and destination countries with a
view to improving the transferability and recognition of skills.
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Roundtable 3: Policy and Institutional Coherence Partnerships
Background
The close and complex relationship between migration and development has long been
recognised. In today’s increasingly globalised and mobile world, the two way effects between
migration and development on countries of origin and destination are even more pronounced.
The policy and academic communities have, therefore, been underlining the need to establish
transparent, appropriate and flexible mechanisms which among other priorities, are able to
facilitate the matching of labour supply with labour demands; ensure that migration is done
through safe and legal pathways; and that the positive effects of migration in economic, social
and cultural terms are maximised in both the countries of origin and destination.
In order to manage migration and fulfill the human, societal and economic development potential
that migration and mobility offers, it is necessary that relevant stakeholders, i.e. governments of
both countries of origin and destination, civil society actors and business, pool their resources
and collaborate closely. While significant experience, research insight and institutional capacity
has been accumulated especially over the past decade, the effort still required to improve policy
coherence and address information and research gaps that continue to persist at the global and
regional levels is not trivial.
The conclusions of the previous GFMDs note that:
• the availability of latest data and research findings is critical in ensuring continued
government action in the field of policy coherence;
• policy-relevant data and research are closely inter-linked with policy coherence between
migration and development; and that
• the discussions held in the GFMD context should be informed by the latest data and
findings of experts and researchers in the field of migration and development.
• In addition, the need for coherence has been underlined repeatedly, as well as the need to
develop useful and meaningful assessment mechanisms.
In this context, Roundtable 3 focuses on concrete measures and the latest state of the art practices
in the areas of policy and institutional coherence, including: data collection and research; the
contribution of regional (inter and intra) processes; and the future of CSD in the GFMD.
Session 3.1: Policy and Institutional Coherence: Latest Data and Research Findings.
Who is an immigrant varies according to official data and definitions. There is a very confusing
reality in terms of data and statistics as different countries keep statistical data according to
national prerogatives rather than international common standards. Different definitions and
means of measurement exist, while data are updated at different periodic intervals. Moreover,
there often exists a gap, or a disconnect, between the formal status of an individual, and his or
her real situation in the host economy or society.
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The aim of this Roundtable 3 Session is two-fold. First, to present as complete a picture as
possible on current research findings supported by best practices so that the policy community
can make the most effective use of this data and insight in formulating and implementing
appropriate policies. Second, to bring together relevant stakeholders in order to jointly assess and
identify specific issues where future, targeted and policy-relevant research is needed and discuss
ways in which research efforts may be geared to that end. A workshop for helping set a joint
research agenda in the Migration and Development fields will be organised in the forthcoming
months in preparation for this Roundtable Session.
Proposed themes to be explored:
Methods and practices that facilitate and improve data collection by governments and
international organizations in both countries of origin and destination.
How can countries of origin be encouraged and supported to take part in the data collection
efforts? Are there regional initiatives in this field that can be used as best practices? Are
sufficient efforts underway to include migration-related questions in the 2010 round of national
censuses? Which additional sources of data (i.e. not only mainstream) can be useful for a fuller
picture of the migration and development nexus?
Methods and practices that encourage data sharing and updating in order to create and
maintain a comprehensive picture of migration and development issues.
Are there best practices (either between countries or at a regional level) that should be
considered in closer detail? Particular attention must be accorded to analysis and information that
includes gender-disaggregated data
Present policy-relevant research that explores the ways in which migration policies
contribute to development, migration patterns feed into development goals (especially the
MDGs), as well as the role of diasporas as agents for/ of development.
What are the latest research findings on the migration-development nexus and the role of
diasporas for both countries of origin and destination? How can these findings be promoted more
effectively (i.e. in a communication friendly manner) in order to be relevant to policy makers and
thereby lead to informed and sound policy formulation and implementation? In what ways can
the link between the policy and the research community be developed more effectively and
efficiently?
Session 3.2: Regional and Inter-regional Processes and Fora.
Proposed issues to be explored:
The core issue of this Session is how and to what extent can regional or inter-regional
processes and fora better ‘feed into’ the GFMD process?
More specifically, in what ways can the practical and policy relevant conclusions that are raised
in these fora be transferred to the discussion taking place at the global level in a meaningful
manner? How can the linkages between the discussions taking place within the various regional
and fora and the GFMD take place in a manner that is more than a dry ‘reporting’, descriptive
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exercise of regional or inter-regional meetings and result in knowledge transfer both for
governments and civil society actors of both sides? It is necessary to underline the need to
concentrate on innovative programmes and initiatives that have been put in place and to
synthesise these in a manner that is sensitive to the considerations and concerns of all regional
participants.
How can technology and popular means of communication facilitate and encourage a more
interactive dialogue on the migration-development nexus and the role of diasporas?
The Athens 2009 CSD aims at undertaking a variety of web-based initiatives to encourage and
facilitate the interaction and wider participation of interested citizens, involved stakeholders,
dispersed migrants and their organisations. For instance, in addition to the Online Dialogue, the
CSD website includes a section on ‘Sharing Experiences of Migration & Development’ and also
aims at promoting the idea of a social networking site to connect migrants/diasporas with the
GFMD/CSD 2009. Launching a multi-lingual online dialogue social forum that enables globally
dispersed migrant and diaspora groups to interact, become more aware of and debate the issues
that will be discussed in the 2009 GFMD and that has a continuity beyond the Athens 2009 CSD
is a significant challenge. In this context it will be necessary to assess what the added value may
be; how the dialogue can be truly interactive rather than a succession of monologues; and finally,
how it can be constructive and informative in rendering the discussion on the migrationdevelopment
relationship more informed, more participatory, more effective and more forward
looking and action oriented.
What might the role of Regional Antennas be for the GFMD?
The Athens 2009 CSD is based on the premise that Regional Antennas fulfill an important role in
the GFMD process and need to be further strengthened. Their role needs to be enhanced not only
as a dissemination effort, but more importantly as rapporteurs of the content and substance of
the discussions held at the regional and inter-regional levels and feed them into the GFMD.
Should the regional or inter-regional processes and fora be institutionalized? And if yes, in what
ways and at what intervals? Will their institutionalisation contribute to the effort to enhance
continuity where necessary and maximise coherence between policy goals and practices?
Session 3.3: The Future of the Civil Society Days in the GFMD.
This Session aims at drawing relevant conclusions from the Brussels 2007 and the Manila 2008
CSD GFMDs and at exploring ways in which the CSD days ought to develop, improve and aim
for in the future fora.
In this context, the following themes are proposed as priorities:
What have been the main lessons learnt regarding the Civil Society Engagement with
Governments on Migration and Development? In other words, in what ways does civil society
engage with the governments in the countries of origin and destination? This involves exploring:
What works? What doesn’t? For whom? And why? What are the best practices? How can
collaboration between civil society actors be improved? And what are the obstacles to civil
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society collaboration in terms of political power, limited resources, different discourse and
analytical perspectives, different interests, etc?
Finally, in terms of thinking of the GFMD in strategic terms, what should be the main goals of
the CSD for the years to come?
Should the priority be the effective engagement with Governments with a view to influencing
policy decisions? Or should it be more the global linking and interaction of civil society actors or
also the global networking and linking between an expanded civil society sector including the
private sector? What are the opportunities and constraints of each option?
