Young migrants must be allowed free movement within the EU!

Brussels, 9 August 2013 /// While celebrating the United Nations’ (UN) International Youth Day, which this year focuses on young migrants, the European Youth Forum wishes to underline the importance of free movement within the EU for young people from third countries. The Youth Forum stresses the importance of working on the integration of young migrants, and calls on decision makers to put an emphasis on reinforcing anti-discrimination legislation.

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The Youth Forum joins the celebrations of the United Nations’ (UN) International Youth Day 2013 dedicated this year to 'Youth Migration: Moving Development Forward'. In the light of this day, the Forum wants to highlight that young people from third countries must enjoy free movement within the EU. This should happen through the abolition of fees and overly bureaucratic procedures for obtaining visas, which greatly hinder the mobility of non-EU nationals in particular.

Peter Matjašič, President of the European Youth Forum stated “freedom of movement must be accessible to all young people. Governments and decision makers should understand that visas, both short and long term, should allow the free movement of young individuals within EU borders.”

International mobility is crucial for young people in terms of improving their skills and competences and increasing their chances to contribute to their country’s labour market, especially in times of crises. However, related issues such as forced migration and or brain drain are worrying side effects that would need to be addressed specifically.

The Forum calls for a strong European initiative to strengthen youth participation in decision-making processes at all levels, including European legislation on visas, and to be fully involved in the fight against growing unemployment and the associated increased risks of poverty and social exclusion.

Peter Matjašič, President of the European Youth Forum underlined “the only way to empower young people to fight for their own rights is to involve youth organisations and youth representatives in the decision making process.”

The Forum points to some stark statistics that outline the problems that migrant youth are facing: as compared with non-migrants, young people with an immigration background are 70% more likely to be in the NEET group (Not in Employment, Education or Training). 2011 Eurostat statistics meanwhile showed that the unemployment rate for foreign-born persons is much higher (up to 7%) than in the total population. On the eve of International Youth Day, the Forum therefore calls on European decision-makers to work on reversing this trend.