The Government of Spain presents a detailed overview of the progress and challenges around coexistence and inclusion of the migrant population

The Minister for Inclusion, Social Security and Migration, Elma Saiz, presents the Monitoring Report of the Strategic Framework for Citizenship and Inclusion against Racism and Xenophobia 2023-2027

Minister Elma Saiz has presented the Monitoring Report on the Strategic Framework for Citizenship and Inclusion against Racism and Xenophobia 2023-2027, which includes the main indicators of progress and pending challenges around inclusion, coexistence and social justice. The Strategic Framework was drawn up by the Government of Spain with the aim of promoting the integration of immigrants and combating racism and xenophobia in Spain.

The report, presented by Elma Saiz, is positive in its assessment of the progress made in regularising the situation of migrants, fundamentally through the concept of "arraigo", and in reducing procedures for being granted nationality. It also highlights Spain's role in the reception of people from Ukraine after the invasion, and the increase in attention to victims of discrimination.

"This report provides us with concrete data to evaluate public policies on integration and the fight against racism," explained Elma Saiz. "Its conclusions demonstrate that we are on the right track, although it also identifies areas for improvement, which allows us to better focus the efforts of administrations and civil society to achieve a fairer and more inclusive society. Moreover, the report shows that discrimination is not only an ethical and social problem, but it is also an economic problem. The Observatory against Racism and Xenophobia has put the figure for the loss derived from employment and education discrimination against foreigners at €17 billion a year.

Results of the report

The Strategic Framework is organised in six blocks ranging from administrative processes to care for victims of discrimination. It is precisely in the area of administrative processes that the most significant progress is reported. Administrative regularisation has been improved and the number of authorisations for 'arraigo' has increased by 400% since 2013, to 240,000. The average time to obtain Spanish nationality also reduced from 583 days in 2022 to 381 days in 2023.

"I am pleased to see that the policy lines we are working on are progressing on the points the report finds so positive. One of the key aspects of the new Aliens Regulation is precisely to streamline processing and eliminate duplication", explained Saiz. "The regulation also advances the concept of 'arraigo'. We provide solutions for people who have been in Spain for more than 2 years. We hope to regularise 300,000 people a year over the next three years via this channel.

Positive developments

In the block dedicated to international protection and humanitarian care, the Strategic Framework report highlights the good management of the reception of people from Ukraine after Putin's invasion. "We are the second European country with the highest number of refugees," said Saiz. "More than 200,000 people from Ukraine have passed through our CREADE (Reception, Care and Referral Centres for Displaced Ukrainians), and some 40,000 have passed through our reception system, without conflict or problems of any kind. In fact, more than 72,000 Ukrainians are registered with the Social Security, contributing to the system", the minister pointed out.

The Strategic Framework Indicators report also assesses the increase in productive returns, which are those where the migrant returns to their country of origin with a business project. These returns reached 9% in 2023. "Migration has to bring benefits for the migrant, for the host country and, of course, for the issuing country. That is why we promote circular migration projects that are a worldwide reference, including the Wafira programme, through which women who come from Morocco to pick berries in Spain take part in training programmes that enable them to open their own businesses when they go back".

Remaining challenges

The report notes that inequalities persist in education, employment, housing and access to basic public services such as health, where foreigners have been found to make less use of health services, except for in emergencies. It also highlights the need to implement integration and coexistence plans in all autonomous communities. By 2023, only six autonomous communities had them, and only three had put in place specific strategies against racism and xenophobia.

"Public administrations must rise to the challenge of the inclusion of migrants and implement plans to facilitate integration", stressed Minister Saiz. "Other countries around us, which received migrants before us, have had negative experiences. Spain now has the opportunity to get it right. Our autonomous model is a model of shared responsibilities, and the autonomous communities have a very important role to play.

Education is one of the areas where there is the greatest shortage. Early school leaving is 20% higher among foreign young people (31%) than among Spaniards (11%), and although they enrol more in basic vocational training, they enrol less in intermediate and higher vocational training and for university degrees (up to 12% less).

Regarding the labour market, the report shows that the employment rate of the non-EU foreign population is almost 10% lower than that of Spaniards, while the unemployment rate is almost 8 points higher for non-EU foreign workers. Foreigners also work on average in lower skilled and lower paid jobs. There is a wage gap of more than €10,000 per year between Spanish and foreign workers.

In terms of education, discrimination is evident in the early school dropout rate for foreign youth, which is 31%, compared to 13% for Spaniards. Likewise, foreign students have lower enrolment rates in intermediate and higher vocational training and university, but higher enrolment rates in basic vocational training.

Housing problems also stand out in that homelessness affects foreigners 7.5 times more, and overcrowding affects foreign (non-EU) households 18% more than Spanish households. Migrants also report increased environmental and social problems in their neighbourhoods, such as noise, lack of green spaces and poor water quality.

Structural discrimination continues to affect foreign women, young people and North Africans in particular, as reflected in OBERAXE's monthly monitoring of hate speech. Some 34% of the hate content monitored on social networks is linked to citizen insecurity. Most of the content (over 80%) targets North Africans, people of African descent and Muslims, or is anti-Islam.

Non official translation