Prague, June 15 (CTK) – The Czech Republic has been gradually improving in creating conditions to integrate migrants, but the situation has worsened in permanent residence and family reunion, Thomas Huddleston, from Migration Policy Group (MPG), said during the presentation of the MIPEX 2015 index Monday.
The Migrant Integration Policy Index (MIPEX) 2015, produced by MPG and the Barcelona Centre for International Affairs (CIDOB), has shown that the Czech Republic gained 45 out of the maximum 100 points and it is in the 24th position among 38 advanced countries.
Huddleston said the Czech Republic is one of the best countries in the Central European region.
According to MIPEX, the Czechs have recently improved in the political participation and access to nationality.
In family reunion and permanent residence, however, higher fees and income requirements are potentially out-of-touch with social and economic realities, the report writes.
It says immigrants have been less likely to access training, quality jobs and the citizenship in the Czech Republic, compared with other countries.
The Czech state should guarantee equal access to the public health insurance system for temporary residents and their families and grant local voting rights to permanent residents, the report recommends.
MIPEX is produced based on 167 criteria in eight spheres – labour market mobility, family reunion, education, health, political participation, permanent residence, access to nationality and anti-discrimination.
This has been the fourth MIPEX report issued, concerning EU countries, Switzerland, Iceland, the USA, Canada, Turkey, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand. The first report was released in 2004.
