Elma Saiz attends the European Council of Justice and Home Affairs, becoming the first Spanish Minister for Migration to attend this forum

The Minister for Inclusion, Social Security and Migration, Elma Saiz, together with the Minister for Home Affairs, Fernando Grande-Marlaska

The JHA is the body that develops cooperation and common policies on cross-border security and justice issues, and is usually attended by ministers responsible for justice and home affairs.

"This is the first time a minister for migration - in this case, a woman - with responsibility for the humanitarian aspect of migration has attended the forum that brings together the ministers for home affairs and justice. This is a declaration of our country's intentions, which above all include respect and the defence of human rights", Saiz explained in a meeting with the media.

For the minister, "the government's migration policy is an example of efficiency because it is cross-cutting and encompasses different actions". It includes, of course, the humanitarian care of people arriving on the coasts, "where the staff of the ministry and social organisations do not understand timetables or calendars". However, 94% of Spain's migration in ten years has come through regular channels, and "the objective is to encourage the migrant population's full integration into society, since Spain has both the need and the capacity to do so".

This is the context in which Saiz framed the National Plan for Integration and Intercultural Coexistence announced this Wednesday by the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez.

"We are not starting from scratch. We have a lot of experience in the ministry and a lot of knowledge accumulated over the years and from the different responses to crises such as Afghanistan and Ukraine. We are going to work hand in hand with autonomous communities and social organisations to implement this plan through co-governance".

In recent days, the JHA Council in Luxembourg has discussed, among other things, the prevention of child sexual abuse online, and the consequences of external conflicts, in particular Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine and the situation in the Middle East, and their implications for the EU

Bilateral meetings

In her meeting with the Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson, the minister acknowledged the Swedish commissioner's personal efforts to push forward the European Pact on Migration and Asylum. "I have reiterated Spain's gratitude for its commitment and unconditional support for regular migration projects, such as the Talent Partnerships and the regulation for the creation of a European talent pool. These are initiatives in the right direction, taking advantage of the many opportunities that migration brings.

Saiz also shared with the commissioner the latest advances in migratory matters undertaken in Spain, including the implementation of the pact in agreement with other departments, the reform of the Aliens Regulation, which will be published next month, and the design of circular migration mechanisms with strategic countries such as Senegal, Mauritania, Gambia, and also, of course, Morocco. "These are policies that are already working".

"Spain is, it goes without saying, committed to putting human rights at the centre of any migration policy", Elma Saiz summed up. With regard to the pact, the minister reported that the technical teams are already working "flat out" to adapt the Spanish regulations so that everything is ready on the day it comes into force.

Elma Saiz is also holding bilateral meetings with Nikolaos Panagiotopoulos, Greece's Minister for Migration and Asylum, and Byron Camilleri, Malta's Minister for Home Affairs, Security and Employment, both countries having similar migration concerns.

The Greek minister, Nikolaos Panagiotopoulos, for his part, expressed his interest in the situation of unaccompanied minors in Spain. Both ministers stressed the need to protect their best interests and place them at the core of migration policies, because the early care and education that can be provided constitutes a great opportunity. Elma Saiz, who fully agreed with this approach, recalled that OBERAXE has identified that hatred towards minors is increasing. "Inclusion policies are key for these children and adolescents to break all the unfounded stereotypes".

Bilateral meeting between the Minister for Inclusion, Social Security and Migration, Elma Saiz, and the Minister for Migration and Asylum of Greece, Nikolaos Panagiotopoulos

Greece and Malta, together with Malta, Italy, Cyprus and Spain, form part of the group of EU member states known as MED5 which, in the negotiations of the European Pact on Migration and Asylum, maintained a solid and united position, advocating a pact that would reflect a fair distribution of solidarity and responsibility between the countries of first entry and the solidarity of the rest of the EU member states. This historic milestone was reached after six years of intense negotiations under the Spanish presidency of the EU.

Migratory situation in Spain

With regard to the migratory situation in Spain, Elma Saiz highlighted the European Commission's report, whose forecasts point to a decrease in the number of migrant arrivals on Spanish coasts in the last quarter of the year, compared to the same months in 2023.

"This is very relevant, if we consider that in 2024 we had a start to the year with an exceptional volume of arrivals, and that in these months there are usually more arrivals due to the sea conditions. These forecasts show that the government's policy is working", the minister explained.

"Spain's continued cooperation both inside and outside our borders is bearing even better fruit in recent weeks with regard to irregular flows. In this regard, I would like to highlight the joint work with Senegal, Mauritania and Gambia, countries with which we recently signed partnership agreements for cooperation on circular migration, in particular on the trip we made to Africa in August. And the fruits of these agreements are already manifesting.

Non official translation