Experts with migrant backgrounds sought for integration forum

• Your input will enhance and diversify the understanding of what it takes to integrate new citizens into the Nordic Region successfully.
• You will have first-hand knowledge about the integration of refugees and immigrants and have migrated to a Nordic country yourself.
• You will add to the existing knowledge base and target-group perspective of Nordic co-operation on the integration of refugees and immigrants.
• You will attend network meetings and, in collaboration with the Nordic Council of Ministers, you will share your knowledge with other Nordic integration forums.

In 2016, the Ministers for Nordic Co-operation decided to set up a programme to address the integration of refugees and immigrants with an emphasis on the comparison of experiences and the generation of new knowledge. The programme's activities include networking between official agencies and civil society on topics such as language, newly arrived children and young people, and integration in the labour market. The programme also promotes knowledge transfer via conferences, seminars and workshops, and disseminates new research results. The Nordic Welfare Centre is one example of this work. The centre disseminates knowledge about the integration of refugees and immigrants through the integration programme. The focus of the programme is on structural and social integration, which complements the work of other sectors (such as the labour market, education and training, and healthcare and social care) by communicating the latest knowledge in the field of integration.

In 2021 the Nordic Migrant Expert Forum was established for a three-year period, in line with the current programme period (2022-2024). Information on the current members of the Nordic Migrant Expert Forum can be found here.

The Nordic programme on the integration of refugees and immigrants has now been extended for an additional three-year period (2025-2027). With this extension, the Nordic Council of Ministers is also supporting the continuation of the Nordic Migrant Expert Forum. Current members have the possibility to re-apply on an equal footing with new applicants to ensure a transparent selection process, which allows for continuity as well as new memberships.

The co-operation programme supports the vision of the Nordic Region as the most sustainable and integrated region in the world by 2030. In particular, it contributes to work on the following strategic priority:

• A socially sustainable Nordic Region – Together, we will promote an inclusive, equal and interconnected region with shared values and strengthened cultural exchange and welfare.

The idea behind the expert forum is to encourage closer dialogue with new Nordic citizens who would like to play a part in delivering on the vision, and in particular on the goals relevant to the programme for the integration of refugees and immigrants.

Your expert knowledge and migrant background will help provide:

• a well-founded and diverse knowledge base for Nordic co-operation on integration
• an overall Nordic understanding of the integration of refugees and immigrants, which builds on similar forums at the national level
• better opportunities for the integration programme to incorporate a target-group perspective into its work

The Nordic Council of Ministers will host physical and virtual meetings and co-ordinate the agenda with the chair of the Nordic Migrant Expert Forum. The emphasis will be on networking, discussion of particular themes, and the provision of information on topical issues.

The expert forum will also be invited, as appropriate, to talk to those responsible for the Nordic Council of Ministers' integration programme and the associated reference group, which consists of representatives of the national ministries responsible for integration. These meetings will provide you with an opportunity to express your thoughts on operational, thematic, and strategic issues relating to the implementation of the integration programme.

The expert forum will consist of two representatives from each of the five Nordic nation-states, as well as Greenland, the Faroe Islands, and Åland. The expert forum will operate for three years and will elect a chair each year. The chair will co-ordinate with the Nordic Council of Ministers regarding the agenda and will meet with the Nordic Council of Ministers and the reference group for the integration programme in the first quarter of each year to plan activities for the year. The Nordic Council of Ministers will act as the secretariat for the expert forum and take minutes of the meetings. Participation in the expert forum will be on a voluntary basis, and there will be no financial remuneration. In special cases, the Nordic Council of Ministers will reimburse travel expenses.

Each member of the expert group must

• represent an organisation that works with integration, or participate as an individual expert in an area relevant to the integration of refugees and immigrants
• have knowledge of one or more of the following areas: the labour market; education and training; health care and social care; gender equality; democracy and citizenship; segregation
• be born outside the Nordic Region and have migrated to a Nordic country
• have mastered a Nordic language and/or English fluently.

Apply by completing the application form with details of your: 

1. Educational background and current job
2. Thematic knowledge of the integration of refugees and immigrants
3. Reasons why you would like to serve on the forum.

The reference group for the integration programme will select the members of the expert forum. The selection process will seek to ensure the maximum possible diversity in areas of expertise, age, country of origin/new home country and gender.

The opening date for applications will be 05.06.2024. The closing date will be 13.10.2024. The selection process is expected to be completed by 01.12.2024.