The Spanish Unique Strategy to Movement from the African Continent

The Spanish government is pursuing a markedly separate path from numerous developed states when it comes to immigration strategies and cooperation with the African continent.

Whereas nations including the US, Britain, France and Federal Republic of Germany are slashing their foreign assistance funding, Madrid stays focused to enhancing its engagement, albeit from a modest foundation.

Current Programs

This week, the capital city has been hosting an African Union-backed "world conference on individuals with African heritage". The African diaspora summit will explore restorative justice and the creation of a innovative support mechanism.

This represents the newest evidence of how Madrid's leadership is attempting to strengthen and diversify its engagement with the mainland that sits merely a few kilometres to the south, over the Mediterranean crossing.

Policy Structure

This past summer Foreign Minister Madrid's top envoy launched a fresh consultative body of prominent intellectual, diplomatic and heritage experts, over 50 percent of them of African origin, to oversee the execution of the thorough Madrid-Africa plan that his leadership released at the end of last year.

Fresh consular offices in sub-Saharan regions, and partnerships in enterprise and academic are scheduled.

Migration Management

The difference between Madrid's strategy and that of other Western nations is not just in funding but in perspective and mindset – and nowhere more so than in dealing with migration.

Like elsewhere in Europe, Government Leader the Spanish premier is seeking methods to contain the entry of undocumented migrants.

"In our view, the movement dynamic is not only a matter of ethical standards, mutual support and dignity, but also one of reason," the prime minister said.

Over 45,000 persons attempted the hazardous maritime passage from Africa's west coast to the Spanish archipelago of the Atlantic islands last year. Calculations of those who lost their lives while making the attempt vary from 1,400 to a overwhelming 10,460.

Workable Approaches

The Spanish administration needs to shelter recent entrants, evaluate their applications and oversee their integration into broader community, whether temporary or more enduring.

However, in rhetoric markedly different from the adversarial communication that originates from many European capitals, the Madrid leadership frankly admits the difficult financial circumstances on the region in Western Africa that force persons to endanger themselves in the effort to reach the European continent.

Furthermore, it attempts to exceed simply saying "no" to incoming migrants. Rather, it is creating innovative options, with a promise to encourage population flows that are safe, orderly and regular and "reciprocally advantageous".

Economic Partnerships

On his trip to the West African nation last year, Madrid's representative emphasized the input that foreign workers contribute to the Iberian economic system.

Spain's leadership funds skill development initiatives for unemployed youth in nations including Senegal, especially for unauthorized persons who have been returned, to help them develop viable new livelihoods in their homeland.

And it has expanded a "cyclical relocation" scheme that offers West Africans temporary permits to enter Spanish territory for defined timeframes of temporary employment, mainly in agriculture, and then come home.

Geopolitical Relevance

The core principle underlying the Spanish approach is that Spain, as the EU member state most proximate to the region, has an essential self interest in the continent's advancement toward comprehensive and lasting growth, and peace and security.

This fundamental reasoning might seem evident.

Yet of course the past had directed the Spanish nation down a distinctly separate route.

Besides a few Maghreb footholds and a small tropical outpost – today's independent Equatorial Guinea – its colonial expansion in the historical period had primarily been focused overseas.

Future Outlook

The cultural dimension includes not only promotion of the Spanish language, with an expanded presence of the language promotion body, but also schemes to assist the transfer of scholarly educators and researchers.

Protection partnership, measures regarding environmental shifts, women's empowerment and an increased international engagement are unsurprising components in today's environment.

However, the plan also lays very public stress it allocates for assisting democratic values, the African Union and, in especial, the regional West African group Ecowas.

This represents positive official support for the latter, which is now experiencing substantial difficulties after observing its five-decade milestone marred by the departure of the Sahelian states – Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger – whose controlling military regimes have refused to comply with its standard for political freedom and effective leadership.

Meanwhile, in a message aimed similarly at Madrid's domestic audience as its sub-Saharan partners, the external affairs department stated "supporting the African diaspora and the battle against prejudice and xenophobia are also essential focuses".

Fine words of course are only a first step. But in the current negative global atmosphere such terminology really does distinguish itself.