Migrant Organisations in Refugee Work: New Opportunities for Municipal Integration Policy? Reflections on the Basis of the Samo.fa Project and the Local VMDO Association

Abstract

In the past 15 years the perception of migrant organisations has been changing. While being predominantly ignored by politics and institutions before the coming into force of German immigration law in 2005 changed institutional awareness. Since then migrant organisations have been involved in the field of integration policy in a more systematic way. In 2015 and 2016 many migrant organisations engaged themselves in voluntary refugee work. As a consequence they were able to intensify cooperations with relevant players at the local level. Against this background this article discusses whether the particular historical situation – the rapid increase in immigration of refugees to Germany – represents a window of opportunity for migrant organisations to improve their position as relevant players in the field of integration policy. It also deals with the question whether these new forms of cooperation will have long-term effects with respect to integration policy structures and actors. Two examples of migrant organisations doing refugee works highlight the questions raised and discussed above. Example 1 is a large-scale project realised by 32 networks of migrant organisations all across Germany which aims at supporting volunteer refugee work. Example 2 is a local umbrella organisation of migrant organisations which has been expanding its activities as well as strategic cooperations in refugee work since 2015.