CES seminar on measuring population movement and integration in a globalized world Paris, 12 June 2008 Session 4: Emerging statistical needs: Discussant’s report Eivind Hoffmann, Head, Statistics and analysis division 3 June 2008

2 Contributions considered Invited papers for this session Responding to the emerging policy needs for statistical information on migrants (David Thorogood, Eurostat) The need for improved statistics and data on international remittances (Neil Fantom, World Bank) Improving statistics on international migration: some priorities (Enrico Bisogno, UNECE) Do integration policies matter? The MIPEX study and a ’joined-up approach’ to measuring success (Thomas Huddleston, MPG) Also considered Current challenges in collecting and compiling comparable statistics on international migration (contributed paper, NIS,Bulgaria) Statistics on migration in Italy: A reassessment of sources and methods (contributed paper, Istat, Italy) The labour market situation of non-nationals and foreign born in selected EU member states (Austria, invited paper for session 2) The work of the Luxembourg group on remittances (Eurostat, invited paper for agenda item 7)

3 Substantive issues identified as generating statistical needs Demographic flows and stocks (UN-ECE) Integration (MPG, Eurostat and UN-ECE) Work related migration (Eurostat) Remittances (WB and Eurostat) Policy formulation, implementation and evaluation (MPG and Eurostat) Diaspora (session 3: New Zealand & UK)

4 Data quality needs identified Scope (coverage) Definitions Descriptive variables, classifications and their resolution Timeliness Comparability over time, between series and between countries

5 Work related migration Emerging needs and challenges: Migrant workers v. working migrants Family migration generated by work related migration Circular migration Trade in services, mode 4 Possible data collection mechanisms: Population censuses Labour force surveys Administrative records

6 Population censuses Statistics on the structure of the immigrant population with detailed resolution of descriptive variables Number of descriptive variables limited by cost concerns Difficult to distinguish between migrant workers and working migrants Possibilities for collecting information on (recent) experience of working or obtaining services abroad Possibilities for collecting information about household members who are working or obtaining services abroad

7 Labour force surveys Statistics on the structure of the immigrant population, even with only a broad resolution of descriptive variables, are undermined by sample size and selective non-response Resolution of descriptive variables will be limited by the same factors Difficult to distinguish between migrant workers and working migrants Possibilities for collecting information on (recent) experience of working or obtaining services abroad Possibilities for collecting information about household members who are working or obtaining services abroad

8 Administrative records Population registers, in the form of –Tax registers –Social security registers Registers of foreigners, maintained to –regulate migration and the presence of foreigners –register the presence of foreigners

9 Valid work permits in Norway 1 January May 2008* * Nordic citizens do not need a work permit and are not included.

10 Valid work permits by type of activity

11 Service providers and trade in services, mode 4 Outside the regular system of work related permits for employees of Norwegian registered employers Enterprises have an obligation to register employees of contractors with the tax authorities The application form for the Schengen system for issuing short term visitors’ visa has ’business’ as a ’purpose for travel’ category. Another is ’medical’. The form also requests information on ’occupation’, to be coded to a set of categories that is completely non- sensical

12 Remittances Consistency with the Balance of Payment framework and definitions has been an important concern for those developing these statistics Now there seems to be a welcome focus also on the actual processes for sending money between members of the household sector in different countries, recognizing the problems arising from –Financial sector transfers do not necessarily carry information about the originator and recipient of the funds –Many remittances are not through financial sector institutions, to avoid taxes or because effective and reliable institutions do not exist in the receiving country To obtain reliable estimates it is important to understand the incentives for correct and complete registrations

13 Demographic flows and stocks Residents and others who are present/absent Duration of presence/absence Citizens v. foreigners Emigrants and diaspora International coherence Ex ante v. ex post

14 Integration ’Integration’ must be like ’gender’ for those producing official statistics, i.e. this concern must be ’mainstreamed’ as a dimension to be present in all planning of data collection and processing of statistics, and not seen as a ’special issue’ to be treated separately from other areas of economic, social and demographic statistics still possible to have ’integration’ as a area of special focus, just as with ’youth’, ’older persons’, ’regions’, ’gender’ etc

15 Describing policies regulating migration: content and implementation It will be important to have tools that may help to compare the policies used to regulating migration and the way that these policies are implemented Articles 4, 5 and 6 of the new EU Regulation on migration statistics concern statistics that describe the outcome of regulatory activities and the persons directly affected, i.e. –Illegal migration through statistics on the apprehension and expulsion of persons found to be present without a legal basis –Asylum seekers and permits granted on this basis –Residence permits, for Work Education, Family –Naturalizations

16

17 Concluding remarks In a globalized world the statistics on population movements and integration are too important to be left to demographers and balance of payments specialists Widening the perspectives to other substantive areas will widen the challenges and opportunities that those producing relevant statistics (currently or potentially) ar facing It will be necessary to have both inter-agency and international cooperation: –To develop useful tools and methods –To take advantage of the fact that a flow (persons, money) departing from one country will arrive in at least one other country