The Challenge of Coordinating Border Management Assistance between Europe and the Maghreb
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Highlights
Europe-Maghreb border cooperation on migration yields limited results; diverging priorities, corruption, and structural gaps require more strategic approaches.
- Maghrebi governments prioritize counterterrorism and stability over curbing irregular migration, viewing emigration as a pressure valve rather than a security threat.
- Geographic remoteness, interagency coordination gaps, corruption, and limited political will are the key structural barriers to effective border management.
- European aid has improved counterterrorism cooperation but has had minimal impact on reducing irregular migration, often only shifting routes rather than flows.
- Offering legal migration pathways as incentives, rethinking zero-tolerance policies, and aligning security programming closely with development efforts could improve outcomes.
Europe’s border security needs and interests do not stop at its frontiers. Over the last 25 years, the European Union and its Member States have increasingly partnered with and relied on neighboring countries to mitigate cross-border challenges, ranging from irregular migration to drug trafficking and terrorism. Within this transnational architecture, the states of the Maghreb—Algeria, Morocco, and Tunisia—have come to play a critical role. Cultivating cooperation with these countries and building their border security capacity have become vital concerns for European policymakers.
This Transatlantic Council on Migration report examines the border security situation within the Maghreb, including Maghrebi states’ cross-border priorities and the structural factors impeding the development of better border security. It then takes stock of efforts by the European Union and its Member States to work with partners in the region to address border security challenges and offers lessons learned from experiences to date.
“While they have little choice but to engage,” the report’s author writes, “European states have great latitude in deciding how they engage with Maghrebi states.” To be effective, this cooperation must be shaped not only around European policy aims but also the needs and interests of governments and citizens in Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia.
Table of Contents
1 Introduction
2 Migration Dynamics and Priorities in the Maghreb
A. Irregular Migration Trends and Routes in the Maghreb
B. How Maghrebi Governments View Irregular Migration
3 Transnational Threats: Dynamics and Priorities
4 Challenges to Securing the Region’s Borders
A. Geography
B. Coordination
C. Equipment
D. Corruption
E. Political Will
5 European Cooperation with the Maghreb on Border Security in the Region
A. What Has Been the Focus of this Cooperation?
B. What Forms Does this Cooperation Take?
C. What Are the Results of This Cooperation to Date?
6 Lessons Learned and Recommendations
About the Transatlantic Council on Migration
Through rigorous research, high-level convenings, and tailored policy advice, the Council provides policymakers with essential analysis and cutting-edge policy recommendations to help tackle the most vexing policy questions.
About the Global Program
The Global Program bridges policy advice, research, and candid dialogue to design effective migration policies, drawing on global evidence and anticipating the forces reshaping how people move.
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