ACP-EU Cooperation on Readmission: Where Does it Stand and Where to Go?

The Cotonou Partnership Agreement (CPA) between the ACP Group of States and the EU, in place since 2000, contains provisions on migration in Article 13. During the second revision of the CPA, finalised in 2010, ACP and EU could not agree on a modification of this article. The parties thus decided to engage in further dialogue on migration. One aim of this dialogue is to prepare the ground for the next revision of the Agreement in 2015. Both parties reported on the progress of the dialogue at the ACP-EU Council of Ministers in 2011 and decided to continue meeting, with the aim to produce concrete results (e.g. joint report, joint Council Conclusions) to strengthen the operational aspects of ACP-EU cooperation in the area of visa, remittances and readmission by the ACP-EU Council on 11-15 June 2012. The dialogue proves to be challenging, with different views on both sides, not in the least in the area of readmission. The aim of this note therefore is to contribute to the process, specifically by strengthening the common knowledge base on readmission. The note examines the EU and the ACP’s different approaches and concerns.