The Regional Director for the Communities highlighted in Oslo Norway, the role that regions play in the process of integrating immigrants in various geographical spaces.

Paulo Teves spoke at the meeting of the International Steering Committee of the Metroplis Network. On the occasion, he mentioned that the European project REGIN - Regions for Migrants and Refugees Integration, which includes the Azores, will “help regional entities to promote the integration of migrants, through the creation of an international cooperation network that will provide several tools for the achievement of this goal."

"In a migratory process and in the case of the Autonomous Region of the Azores as in several other European regions, immigrants seek the institutions that are closest to them and that respond to their needs and aspirations," said the Regional Director. According to him, "it is especially important to know, share and adopt effective integration models, which have already been used and achieved success in other regions, besides the study and data collection that will contribute to a broader perception of the migratory reality.”

Paulo Teves pointed out that this project is promoted by CPMR - Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions, an organisation chaired by Vasco Cordeiro, President of the Government of the Azores, and approved under AMIF - Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund. It involves the participation of the regions of Campania and Puglia (Italy) Skane (Sweden), and Catalonia and Murcia (Spain).

The project also includes the participation of the non-governmental entities Inclusive Strategies SL and Centre For International Information and Documentation in Barcelona, both from Spain, and the Migration Policy Group from Belgium.

During his stay in Norway, the Regional Director for the Communities is also participating in the seminar on "Immigration and Integration in the Nordic Countries," where the immigrant labour market, integration and citizenship policies, interculturality and sustainable development will be discussed by political and academic leaders from this Nordic country.

The Metropolis Network, which includes the Azores since 2011, is composed of more than 70 organisations from 28 countries; it is headquartered in Ottawa, Canada.

The International Steering Committee is the main decision-making body of this international network for research and development of public policies in the area of migration, diversity and integration of immigrants from all over the world, being composed of institutions from more than three dozen countries in Europe, America, Asia and Oceania.