Law enforcers and border guard officials from European Union (EU)
member states will meet in Brussels on 4 June to discuss challenges
and best practices on combating irregular migration and human
smuggling with representatives from the EU member states, EU
institutions and experts including IOM, Frontex and Europol.

With irregular migration and in particular human smuggling
increasingly being linked with organized criminal networks who in
turn are diversifying their activities, EU member states are now
facing a growing trans-national trend. Although each year, an
estimated 680,000 legal immigrants arrive in Europe, it is
estimated that about half a million people cross the European
Union's borders irregularly in the same time frame, most of them
with the aid of organized criminal networks.

The event in Brussels, which will close a one-year IOM project
funded by the European Commission's ARGO programme aimed at
improving EU cooperation on asylum, visas, immigration and external
borders issues, will examine recommendations made during the past
year on Schengen and visa information systems, biometrics and
travel document security in the context of irregular migration.

These include the need for increased data sharing and improved
data tracking among EU members through a more harmonized system.
Currently, data systems differ among member states and a lack of
inter-operability among the systems is hampering a more effective
use and sharing of the information on databases.

The IOM project brought together Belgian, Latvian, Polish and
Slovak law enforcers dealing with migration issues to share
information and practical experience on the European legislation on
irregular migration and human smuggling, information collection and
sharing, travel document security and biometrics. The purpose was
to improve the understanding of the phenomenon of irregular
migration in Europe, including new trends, challenges as well as
good practices at national and regional levels in dealing with
it.

For more information, please contact:

Monica Zanette

MRF Brussels

Tel: + 32 2 235 66 97

E-mail: "mailto:mzanette@iom.int">mzanette@iom.int