The EMN Work Programme 2017/2018 sets out the objectives, priorities and planned activities of the network for the two coming years.

The main objective of the EMN in 2017 and 2018 is to produce up-to-date, objective, reliable, relevant and comparable information to support policymakers, practitioners, academia and the wider public.

The activities that will be carried out in 2017 and 2018 include:

1. EMN publications: such as answers to ad-hoc queries launched by a Member State or the Commission; Annual Policy Reports on migration and asylum at Member State and at the European level; EMN Bulletins; Asylum and Migration Glossary; and 4 thematic studies per year.

The subjects of the 4 EMN studies of 2017 have already been selected (and will be carried out in the following order):

• Challenges and practices for establishing applicants’ identity in the migration process;

• The changing influx of asylum seekers in 2015-2016: Member State responses and lessons learned;

• The impact of EU and national rules on the effectiveness of return in the Member States: challenges and good practices;

• Unaccompanied Minors after the asylum process.

2. Expert and Working Groups: such as the Return Expert Group (REG), or the EMN Working Groups on Communication, Statistics, the Glossary or the ad-hoc queries.

3. Networking building and collaboration: such as the conferences organised by the EMN National Contact Points at the national level and dedicated to a variety of topics; or the Annual EMN Conferences, which will take place in Malta and Estonia in 2017 (to stay informed of upcoming EMN events, have a look at our calendar).

For further information, see the 2017/2018 Work Programme attached.