The European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Banking Federation (EBF) have joined forces to organise in Paris, on 22 and 23 March 2007, the second FEMIP Conference, which will focus on the issue of financial transfers from migrant workers in the Euro-Mediterranean area.
This event is characterised by the fact that it will involve the Euro-Mediterranean banking sector in the discussions on this subject, where little work has been done as yet insofar as migrants' flows from Europe to the Mediterranean are concerned. The framework for the discussions will be provided by the study conducted by the FEMIP Trust Fund in March 2006, which highlighted two things: the extent of the total transfers (nearly EUR 8 billion is officially transferred every year - some EUR 15 billion if informal transfers are taken into account) and the high cost of the methods of transfer used, which penalises the people concerned.
Bringing together some 250 participants and 20 or so figures from the banking and financial sector, the supervisory authorities, experts and representatives of the migrant communities, the 2007 FEMIP Conference will provide a forum for exchanging experiences and making specific recommendations on the following topics:
- Gaining a better understanding of the economic impact of migration
- Facilitating migrants' financial transfers
- Developing the role of the banking sector
- Examining the regulatory, foreign exchange and payment systems aspects
- Stepping up action for development: micro-finance, mortgage products and securitisation.