EU – Baltic States, Financial Services, Funds, Legislation, Society

During the summit, Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics signed an agreement on the EU Emergency Trust Fund for stability and addressing root causes of irregular migration and displaced persons in Africa. A decision on Latvia’s contribution of EUR 50,000 to the EU Emergency Trust Fund for Africa was approved at the Latvian Cabinet of Ministers meeting on 13 October.

With Latvia providing input to the EU Emergency Trust Fund for Africa, Edgars Rinkevics expressed the conviction that the newly established Trust Fund will help tackle the underlying causes for instability, forced displacement and illegal migration. The Action Plan of the Valletta Summit on immediate and long-term measures will include real and prompt action, including, first of all, projects to promote employment opportunities in the countries of origin and transit for migrants. Second, national and regional action plans to fight smuggling of migrants and trafficking in human beings will be drawn up or updated. And finally, the capacity of countries will be reinforced to respond in a timely manner to readmission requests, the Foreign Minister emphasised.

The Trust Fund aims to improve stability and address the root causes of migration in the Sahel and Lake Chad, the Horn of Africa, and the countries of northern Africa. The EU Emergency Trust Fund for Africa will tackle socio-economic and socio-political problems, connecting such efforts with development cooperation policy measures, for instance, job creation, especially for young people, and countering radicalisation.

The summit has gathered delegations from 35 African countries that have become countries of origin for illegal migration due to armed conflicts and a very difficult economic, social and human rights situation. In October alone, more than 200 thousand migrants made the Mediterranean crossing to Europe – as many as in the whole of last year.

According to Lithuanian president Dalia Grybauskaite, it is necessary to invest more in countries hit by unrest, wars and poverty to stop people fleeing their home countries.

“What is happening in Africa has very serious consequences for the whole of Europe. Armed conflicts, terrorism and poverty make people leave their homes and flee their country. Instability in Africa also poses a threat to the security of our people. Lithuania has experienced this recently – Lithuanian sailors have been abducted in Nigeria. Therefore, we cannot stand indifferent and be only observers. We must make a joint effort to manage the chaotic flow of refugees and eliminate the root causes of migration,” the president said.

The Valletta Summit will adopt a political declaration and an action plan on joint EU and African measures to stop the influx of migrants from the African continent.

Under this plan, African countries commit themselves to engage more actively in smashing human smuggling and trafficking networks and fighting crime as well as cooperating with the EU regarding the return of economic migrants – those persons whose lives are not endangered – to their countries of origin. At present, the return of economic migrants is complicated – less than half of the persons who should be deported from the EU actually return to their countries of origin.

Ongoing armed conflicts are the main cause of the migration crisis, the President said; therefore, the EU and African countries will work together to ensure peace and stability in the region. The European Community will take a more active role in the prevention of conflicts. The EU is currently participating in 10 missions and operations which help ensure stability and contribute to fighting terrorism, piracy and violence in African countries. Lithuania is engaged in three of them.