Vienna Migration Conference 2024
9th edition of ICMPD’s annual flagship conference
VMC2024 session recordings
ICMPD’s annual flagship event, the Vienna Migration Conference (VMC), convened in October 2024 for its ninth edition, bringing together decision-makers and migration practitioners from inside and outside of government. The conference featured 15 live sessions, 32 speakers, and 327 in-person participants representing 48 countries, alongside 1,551 online participants connecting from around the world.
As new leaders took the helm of the European Union institutions and the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum moved from blueprint to action, VMC2024 covered a range of topics poised to shape the European migration agenda in the coming years. Discussions focused on labour migration, strategies for safer routes and managing irregular arrivals, shifting public sentiment on migration, and the steps required to being implementing the New EU Pact on Migration and Asylum. Informed by recent EU elections and ongoing negotiations for the new five-year mandate, the event was livestreamed once again—linking a global audience to these critical debates.
Click here to access the full programme.
Daniel Delgado, United States
“What the Safe Mobility Offices do, among other things, is really establish a central voice and an established bank of information for individuals to trust and to follow through with that process.”
Carsten Schmitz-Hoffmann, GIZ
“The idea of the Centres for Migration and Development is to empower people to make informed decisions regarding migration. Our experience demonstrates that we can leverage the potential of migration in a way that benefits both potential and returning migrants, as well as countries of origin and destination.”
Bram Frouws, MMC
“Implementing the Safe Mobility Offices model in Europe would show migrants as well as transit and origin countries that Europe is serious about providing regular and safe migration pathways, both for protection as well as for labour purposes.”
Maciej Duszczyk, Poland
“If we have European challenges, we have to find European solutions.”
Chaudhry Salik Hussain, Pakistan
“Our goal is to ensure that our citizens working abroad are not only contributing to the host economies but also realising their full potential while having their rights safeguarded.”
Md. Ruhul Amin, Bangladesh
“The Talent Partnerships and labour migration frameworks represent win-win cooperation that are mutually beneficial for both sending and receiving countries…together we can forge safer, regular migration.”
Lucja Kalkstein, Eryk
“What we found in Nigeria was a vast pool of talent—a young and growing population with a relatively good level of education. For us, it became clear that the time for Africa is now.”
Jo Antoons, Fragomen
“To be successful, we must reexamine our immigration systems and ensure they serve their purpose. This involves bringing together the private sector, civil servants, and immigration professionals to create practical and accessible solutions for SMEs.”
Bianka Debussche Valkovicova, European Commission
“There is no one tool, one fund, or one country that can tackle the challenge of integration alone. We need a multi-stakeholder approach with cooperation at all levels—local authorities, employers, and social partners.”
Johannes Luchner, European Commission
“Cooperation between member states and EU agencies is getting much stronger. In the past, member states didn’t regard it as a badge of honour if they had to work with an agency. Now, the doors are wide open, and our challenges are rather the contrary: how do we cope with all these demands?”
Nina Gregori, EUAA
“The pact is the next level of the creation of a common European asylum system, and we hope this implementation will bring us to more convergence—that’s our main goal.”
Sirpa Rautio, FRA
“If the safeguards and rights pillar fail, the system will lose credibility. Without respect for rule of law and fundamental rights, Europe would no longer uphold the values and treaty obligations that are its foundation.”
Stefano Failla, Frontex
“Being situationally aware is no longer enough. Situational awareness gives you an understanding of your immediate surroundings, but it does not help you plan, prevent, and anticipate challenges. Foresight is incredibly important to orient a proper operational response at the border and within the Schengen space.”
Hanne Beirens, Director, MPI Europe
“Sustainable partnerships must elevate the voices of third countries and recognise their contributions to global migration solutions.”
Ana Sofia Walsh, Fragomen
“The EU is trying to ride two horses on labour and non-labour migration. While there is no silver bullet for reconciling the two, better workforce integration of migrants provides a promising path forward.”
Guy Stessens, Council of the European Union
“Geopolitical surprises are potential black swans which could have significant migration consequences.”
Michael Spindelegger, ICMPD
“Many of our citizens are not satisfied with the current state of migration, and with the results that migration policies have achieved up to this point. Regardless of whether we agree with this assessment or not, the task before us is evident.”
Malin Frankenhaeuser, ICMPD
“With all the black swan events and volatility of the last couple of years affecting the world of migration, we’re proud to have VMC consistently bringing us together for the past nine years.”
Ivan Krastev, IWM
“Time pressure is the biggest problem facing Europe as it grapples with issues arising from its history and geography. What Europe needs is time, and what Europe lacks is time.”
Gerhard Karner, Austria
“Cooperation does not stop once an agreement is signed. It is an ongoing process that requires long-term commitment and resources.”
Nikolaos Panagiotopoulos, Greece
“The Pact provides a mechanism for European solutions to a European problem. Although it is not perfect, we must focus on implementing it effectively.”
Nicole de Moor, Belgium
“Migration diplomacy requires a whole-of-government approach. Migration is not just a matter for migration ministers; we need colleagues across the trade, economy, development, humanitarian aid, and foreign affairs portfolios to work together with us.”
Ruven Menikdiwela, UNHCR
“The 1951 Convention and the 1967 Protocol are the foundation of the international refugee protection framework. They have saved millions of lives in the past and will continue to save millions of lives in the future. These texts are as valid today as they were almost 75 years ago when they were drafted.”
Craig Damian Smith, Pairity
“It is crucial that matching data is legible and understandable for civil society organisations and government partners. Co-designing usable dashboards and portals helps ensure transparency, improves trust, and allows better preparation for receiving communities.”
Marc Geer, Fragomen
“The days of using Excel spreadsheets to navigate labour migration complexities are long gone. Generative AI now allows us to plan for projects involving thousands of workers from diverse countries, adapting to intricate regulations in real-time.”
Lorenzo Rinaldi, eu-LISA
“Eurodac will be a completely new system. It will no longer be only a system supporting asylum but also resettlement, relocation, and irregular migration monitoring within the EU. It will help foster a balance between responsibility and solidarity among member states.”
Tuba Bircan, VUB
“Predictive models can help us prepare for migration flows, but they are only as good as the data they are trained on.”
Ashraf Abushady, UNIDO
“The pace of technological adoption is accelerating – Facebook took three and a half years to reach one million users, ChatGPT took five days, and Threads reached the same milestone in just one hour.”
Simon Mordue, EEAS
“The policy objective should never be to stop migration. Migration is a natural phenomenon that’s been with us since the beginning of our existence.”
Wael Badawi, Egypt
“A security-alone approach to migration management is not the answer. We must focus on migration and diplomacy in a holistic manner to address the root causes and forge partnerships.”
Henrik Ankerstjerne, Denmark
“Why did we stop work on our proposed external processing framework? Demonstrating that there is an alternative way forward on reducing irregular migration was an important first step. As the EU now seeks to get together around some promising new ideas and possibilities, we are in a better place.”
Catherine Woollard, ECRE
“The rule of law precludes us from implementing various external processing schemes. While all countries should develop their asylum and protection systems as the basis of the 1951 Refugee Convention and international refugee law, Europe’s outsourcing of its responsibilities does not encourage other countries to build up their own protection systems.”
Daniel Thym, University of Konstanz
“The political rationale of the safe third country model is not that you transfer tens of thousands of people, but that it is enough to transfer a few hundred or a few thousand, and that doing so will have a deterrent effect with fewer people arriving.”
Highlights
VMC2024 Takeaways
Discover key insights from VMC2024 on labour migration, strategies for safer routes and handling irregular arrivals, public sentiment on migration, and the work ahead to start implementing EU’s new Pact.
VMC2024 Report
Download the full VMC2024 report for expert analysis and recommendations from last year’s conference, reflecting key discussions and insights from the 9th edition of ICMPD’s annual flagship event.
VMC2024 Programme
VMC2024 featured a high-level programme on key priorities: labour migration, safer pathways, irregular arrivals, shifting public sentiment, and implementing the EU Pact.
The conference in numbers
Participation from across the globe
Discover past editions
VMC2024 was made possible thanks to the following partners
