Migration and city diplomacy: empowering cities on the Central Mediterranean Route

Mixed Migration and City Diplomacy Training Program

From December 13 to 19, the City Diplomacy Lab, in partnership with the Mixed Migration Centre and Columbia Global Centers in Paris, Tunis, and Nairobi, will empower cities on the Central Mediterranean Route through this highly interactive virtual training on mixed migration and city diplomacy. Participating municipal officers will be supported in developing their own action plans for mixed migration and for working along the Central Mediterranean Route.

  • Participants: this free training is open to municipal officers from cities in countries along the Central Mediterranean Route*. Participants who attend at least 80 percent of the course will receive a certificate of completion.
  • Dates: 13, 14, 15, 18, and 19 December 2023, 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. CET.
  • Format: highly interactive virtual training featuring classes, group work, and guest lectures.
  • Language: the training will be conducted in English.
  • Deadline: applications must be submitted through the form below by Monday, December 11.

Course description

Mixed migration refers to cross-border movements of people, including refugees fleeing persecution and conflict, victims of trafficking, and people seeking better lives and opportunities. Motivated to move by multiple factors, people engaged in mixed migration have different legal statuses as well as a variety of vulnerabilities. In an increasingly urbanized world, cities are at the forefront of mixed migration. This applies whether refugees and migrants transit cities or settle in them for longer periods of time. Despite cities not having clear mandates on migration issues and raising funds for migration programming, local authorities, national governments, international organizations, and international policy processes are increasingly recognizing the importance of working at the city level to advance protection and solutions for refugees and migrants. This course shall explore: What does it mean for cities to work on issues of mixed migration and to work along migration routes? What are the various types of activities that cities can undertake? What tools, partnerships, and other resources are available? At the end of this one-week intensive course, city actors will be supported in developing their own draft action plans for mixed migration and for working along the Central Mediterranean Route.

The training is co-organized by City Diplomacy Lab and Mixed Migration Centre.

It is jointly hosted by Columbia Global Centers | Paris, Columbia Global Centers | Tunis, and Columbia Global Centers | Nairobi.

Institutional donor: United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

Registration is now closed


* The training is open to municipal officers in the following countries: Algeria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Côte d’Ivoire, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Italy, Kenya, Libya, Mali, Malta, Mauritania, Morocco, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Somalia, Spain, Sudan, The Gambia, and Tunisia.