The Role of Education and Training in the Empowerment and Inclusion of Migrants and Refugees

International migration has reached historically unprecedented levels, and since global mobility and complex humanitarian emergencies show little evidence of abating, is set to remain at high levels for the foreseeable future (Zetter et al., 2003). Migration has become a contentious political issue, rising higher on the political and media agendas of major destination countries. Recognising its economic, political and social significance, international bodies and national governments are adopting more co-ordinated policies to manage migration and asylum, and to facilitate integration. A number of countries operate targeted resettlement programmes for migrants and refugees that seek to facilitate their successful integration into the host society (Colic-Peisker & Waxman, 2004). Notwithstanding these efforts, a recent study of international migration reported that the upward trend in international migration into the world’s richest countries since the mid-1990s has been accompanied by “persistent integration problems” (OECD, 2004).