The State of the European Union. The European Parliament faces its most important elections yet

THE STATE OF THE EUROPEAN UNION 94 chapter as the Global Pact on Migration or the Marrakesh Pact), adopted by world leaders in Marrakesh on 11 December 2018, is the first intergovernmental agreement struck on migra- tion. The 258 million migrants living in different points of the globe today account for 3.4% the world population. In the light of this reality, the Global Pact on Migration constitutes a land- mark agreement that represents the first global, intergovernmental consensus on an integrated, comprehensive, coordinated, human rights- based response to this many-faceted phenom- enon. The pact, which is rooted in the principles of shared responsibility and international coopera- tion, respects individual national sovereignty over migratory policy and management. It is also aligned with the UN’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the protection of the human rights of vulnerable persons. Mechanisms for monitoring signatories’ compli- ance are expected to be in place by 2022. The Marrakesh Pact sets out twenty-three objectives that fall thematically within the fol- lowing blocks: the compilation of adequate data and data sharing between states, the min- imisation of structural factors leading to migra- tion, legal pathways for migration and effective protection, access to basic services, sustainable development, the fight against human traffick- ing and alternatives to detention. It also estab- lishes the final, more general, objective of strengthening international cooperation and global partnerships to ensure the fulfilment of other stated goals. The pact contemplates the improvement of registry and documentation systems to ensure that migrants are properly able to establish their identities during migration procedures and that their privacy and personal data are protected. It also seeks to promote the development of safer, more flexible, legal migration pathways, save lives and improve assistance provided in transit and coordinate efforts to stop human traffick- ing. The document also addresses issues such the need to ensure migrants’ access to basic so- cial services, employment opportunities and training, combat all forms of discrimination and promote complete social inclusion and cohe- sion. The pact underscores the responsibility of all countries to contribute to sustainable devel- opment around the world, including sending and transit countries. Last, but not least, it calls upon governments to consider the detention of migrants a last resort measure, seek alternatives to this option and facilitate safe and dignified return and readmission. Although the non-binding status of the Marrakesh Pact makes the implementation of the measures it contemplates challenging, it does provide a sound basis on which to forge a basic framework for multilateral cooperation, shared responsibility and solidarity between sig- natory states. One can only hope that its great- est debility – which is the refusal of some na- tions to sign on to the document – will be remedied by a change of heart on their part further along the road. A signatory to the pact, the Spanish govern- ment has demonstrated further leadership in this area with its announcement of a new Strategic Plan for Citizenship and Integration and a State Fund for Integration (both yet to implemented) as well as vigorous denunciations of the increase of xenophobic discourses in European politics. This drift towards xenophobia makes it more important than ever for signatory governments to align their migration policies with the tenets of the Marrakesh Pact. They must not forget that in signing the pact they have made a firm commitment to respect the rights of all migrants,