location patterns and social integration of economic immigrants: a comparative analysis of the greek...

EUROPEAN RESEARCH CONFERENCEHomelessness, Migration and Demographic Change in Europe

Pisa, 16th September 2011

Interdisciplinary Center 'Sciences

for peace’

Location patterns and social integration of economic immigrants: a comparative analysis of the Greek and Northern

European context

Aris Sapounakis, Ph.D.,Assistant Professor, University of Thessaly

Ioanna Katapidi, M.Sc. in urban regeneration

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Introduction

Immigrants in Greece are a very recent phenomenon compared to the north of Europe

Generally the quality and extent of data is relatively poor, especially for Greece

Athens as other metropolitan cities such as London, Amsterdam gather more than 50% of the country’s total immigrant population. Thus the integration pattern in city follows that of the country (later on, before we present the EU indexes)



Immigrants in Europe

Immigrant location patterns tend to depend on a number of parameters such as:

Low land valueProximity to workLocal and national level statutory policiesNeighborhood of clusters of similar nationality



Integration

“The processes by which individual and groups of immigrants are incorporated into various social arenas and segments of the new host society. Integration is a twoway process whereby both the immigrants and the host society adapt new features as a result of their interaction.” (Martkainen, Tomas, 2005)

. “The inclusion of individuals in a system, the creation of relationships among individuals and their attitudes towards the society. It is the result of the conscious and motivated interaction and cooperation of individuals and groups” (Lockwood, 1964)

“Tolerance does not equal integration” (Koff)



Integration

Basic forms of social integration: Acculturation Placement Interaction Identification (Esser, 2000).

Typologies of immigrant integration: Assimilation Toleration Pluralism-multiculturalism Differential exclusion



Assessing IntegrationDomains of integration/Variables used to assess integration:

Civic/Political IntegrationResidential IntegrationEconomic/ Labour Market IntegrationLinguistic IntegrationEducational Integration Cultural Integration (Ray, Brian, 2002)

One city may present a high level of one type of integration and a low level of another e.g. Lyle is characterized by a high level of political immigrant integration but a very low level of residential and economic integration



Integration and Spatial PatternsThe spatial element of segregation has been widely supported by a number of authors and has been infused in urban policies

The idea of mixed communities has gained a lot of attention and has been considered as a way to support social integration

Thus,The more dispersed-uneven located immigrants are, the more social integrated they may beUrban spatial organization is at the heart of exclusion and inclusion processesThe urban fabric and area based programmes tend to attract more attention than horizontal social measures and actions

.



Integration and Spatial Patterns

Index of dissimilarity as a measure of how segregated a district is, i.e. what percentage of any given group would have to dislocate in order to achieve an even spread across the district.

Values below 30% are regarded as low or random 30–60% is moderate (a cause for concern); and above 60% is high.



The case of AthensSpatial Patterns of immigrants

(Arapoglou, 2004)



The case of Athens

Arapoglou,20

According to most researchers, Athens presents an example of fairly even distribution of immigrant communities, even more than in other southern European cities like Barcelona

No ghettos in Athens

During the last decade, immigrants have been observed to concentration in specific areas of the city center

Spatial Patterns of immigrants



The case of AthensIntegration

:

Civic/Political Integration

Residential Integration

Very little statutory concern Constrained and costly naturalization procedures Very few asylum applications are accepted Greek nationality is granted following a long list of

requirements and the highest fee in Europe No voting rights

Immigrants intercepted to cross the borders illegally are initially accommodated in a dozen reception centers spread across the country

Due to the lack of social housing, the majority of immigrants have no other solution than to look for accommodation in the private rental market

Lower standard housing conditions compared to Greeks Immigrants are asked to pay higher rents than non

immigrants for the same dwelling




Greece is better than the European average in access and eligibility to the labour market but worse on other strands, especially rights associated with labour market participation

Higher percentage of immigrants participating in the informal economy

Loss of employment tends to lead automatically to the suspension of legal residence (Psimmenos and Kasimati, 2003)

Structural exclusion-DIKATSA

Lack of efficient state provision

:

Economic/ Labour Market Integration

Linguistic Integration




No particular measures

Poor performance in anti-discrimination, especially in remedies, sanctions and proactive policies. Positive in equality agencies (European Civic Citizenship and Inclusion Index, 2004).

High levels of xenophobic intolerance. The immigrants who integrate better are those who adopt Greek traditions and culture, such as Albanians who change their names to Greek forms, baptize their children etc. Low respect for diversity

The media now turning a little less negative

National level of policies rather than local regional level which is more important

:

Educational Integration

Cultural Integration



The case of the UK

Dissimilarity index for UK urban areas, 2001

.

Source: Karen Schönwälder, 2007

The strong tendency to concentrate in a small number of large urban areas in which the non immigrant population has decreased, has raised concerns for ghetto situations




The case of London

Concentration of Minority Groups in areas above 30% in London





“Interaction and bridging contacts depend less on the residential patterns and more on group preference” (Karen Schönwälder, 2007)

The case of LondonSpatial Patterns of immigrants

Index of Dissimilarity , Muslims, London 2001




• Development of the Refugee Integration and Employment Service for people granted refugee status

• Low performance in the eligibility for nationality• £50m Community Cohesion investment over 3 years• Asylum case resolution programme• Regional refugee integration strategies• Cooperation of London local authorities with MRCOs

(Migrant and refugee community organizations

• Investment in affordable housing, and rough sleeping support

• London as a whole, and especially inner London boroughs, have a strong history of providing sanctuary to new arrivals, unlike outer London boroughs

The case of LondonIntegration





• Although statistics show that immigrants tend to work in lower level jobs than their skills and experience, there is evidence that they often reach the economic performance of locals

• Government policy supports quick access to employment.This leads migrants into low‐pay work impeding them to make long‐term strategies based on employment progression

• Advisory and assistance bodies (eg Refugee Integration and Employment Service)

• Project-Programmes (e.g. Refugee Education, Employment, Training and Advice project)

• English Language: Classes within mainstream provision. In the adult sector, government expenditure on ESOL has tripled from 2001 to 2009

.


Economic/ Labour Market Integration




• Dedicated Schools Grant and New Arrivals for Excellence Programme

• The Ethnic Minority Achievement Grant (EMAG) channels funding to schools for children of under‐achieving ethnic minorities. 85% of the fund was for schools while the remainder was for work in boroughs

• Short-term programmes

• Refugee Community Development Fund• Important London trade unions activity in campaigns• Cooperation with other civil society groups (e.g. faith‐based

groups and MCROs, GLA)• e Advice and Guidance Unit and Newham Primary Care

Trust’s drop‐in service for vulnerable migrants• London presents a cosmopolitan and tolerant attitude.

Londoners support cultural diversity rather than immigration restriction

• A number of groups defending and promoting immigrants rights






• Diverse ethnic groups in the country due to colonialism

• Turkish, Moroccan, Surinamese and Antillean are the most representative immigrants (four to six times over-represented in the largest cities of the Netherlands)

The case of the NetherlandsSpatial Patterns of immigrants

Dissimilarity Index

Sources: Social and Cultural Planning Office of the Netherlands; Central Bureau

of Statistics, the Netherlands.



• Relatively high concentration of immigrants

• 39.2% of all Turkish immigrants live in a Turkish concentration area

• 45.2% of all Moroccans

live in a Moroccan concentration area

The case of AmsterdamSpatial Patterns of immigrants

Concentrations of Ethnic Categories in Amsterdam, 2004

Source: City Monitor Amsterdam Geography, University of Amsterdam

and Q-S Amsterdam



There are clearly concentrations, but this does not automatically imply extreme segregation

Over the past decade Turkish and Moroccan immigrants tend to choose the Western parts of the city and newer social housing

The case of AmsterdamSpatial Patterns of immigrants

Concentrations of Ethnic Categories in Amsterdam, 2004



• 1998- policy of obligatory integration - implementation of Integration of the New Comers act

• Netherlands performs above the European average for the eligibility and rights in nationality

• Compulsory integration exams to long term immigrant residents and new immigrants from third world countries

• “Dutch immigration law and policy are characterized by control, security and restriction (Daphne Program, 2003)

• Welfare state - Large Cities Policy• Cooperation of local government and other actors

• Spatial dispersal policies focusing on urban restructuring housing mixes and homogeneous mixed neighborhoods

• High quality social housing. Easy location and accessibility, attractive living standards regardless of income

• After 1990`s major attention at unemployment policies for both short term and long term unemployment

• Labor market participation increased; the gap between immigrants and non immigrants narrowed significantly



Economic/ Labour

Market Integration

The case of AmsterdamIntegration



• Dutch language courses - exams

• The gap between the non western immigrants and non-immigrants has decreased

• 1995 – 2003: the share of Turkish and Moroccan youth that started a higher education track doubled from 10% to 20% per

• High subsidies in schools for children with a non western background and pupils whose parents are in a weak social position

• High performance in anti-discrimination measures compared to the EU average

• Amsterdam is an open minded liberal city




The case of AmsterdamIntegration



COMPARISONSummary of Strengths and weaknesses against

the Normative Framework Labour market inclusion



COMPARISONFamily ReunionLong Term Residence



COMPARISONNationality Antidiscrimination



CONCLUSIONS Urban space can demonstrate situations of exclusion/inclusion

However promoting spatial patterns instead, or at the back, of social policies is an oversimplified approach and a precarious venture in dealing with complicated social issues

Spatial segregation does not automatically imply an advantage or disadvantage. There are cases that low spatial segregation levels correspond to high levels of housing and social marginalization (Arbaci, 2008), or, paradoxically, an increase in social polarization (Maloutas, 2007). In addition, usually concentration lies on other than marginalization issues, such as people’s preferences, cultural traditions, or even external factors such as the decrease of local population due to low fertility rates, as in some UK areas. Similarly the dispersion of immigrants does not mean more integration. In Greece for example the low levels of residential segregation are to a large extent attributed to the lack of social housing, to the imminence of particular work typologies etc.



CONCLUSIONS

Structural conditions, such as welfare, housing systems, urban and planning policies play a key role in immigrants’ integration

Education and economic inclusion are in the core of the integration aims

The importance of local and regional level in integration policies and actions

The cooperation of different stakeholders and actors and the participation of immigrants in these groups is vital for the integration procedure

Education and economic inclusion in the core of the integration aims

location patterns and social integration of economic immigrants: a comparative analysis of the greek...

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