As in the past editions, the EASO Lunch Briefing with Ambassadors saw the distinguished presence of the Heads of the EU diplomatic representations accredited to Malta and high-rank representatives of the Maltese Government.
Most notably, the Maltese Minister of Home Affairs and National Security, Dr Michael Farrugia and the Minister for European Affairs and Equality, Dr Helena Dalli, actively participated in the discussion, along with the Dutch, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian and Spanish Ambassadors in Malta.
In line with previous editions, the Heads of the European Commission Representation Office in Malta and the UNHCR Liaison Officer to EASO intervened as well, along with representatives of relevant invited organisations such as ICMPD and IOM, also attended. Representatives of the British High Commission, of the Czech Embassy and of the Consulate General of Switzerland as well as of the Maltese Ministry Foreign Affairs and Trade Promotion attended as well.
The lunch, hosted for the first time by Mr. Jamil Addou, EASO Executive Director a.i., aimed at discussing the latest situation of asylum in the EU and the latest developments related to EASO's work. In particular, several presentations, including on the latest situation of Asylum in the EU+, latest Social Media Monitoring findings and latest operational and future developments of the Agency were presented by EASO high-ranking officials.
The participants enjoyed the event and lively contributed to the high-level discussion focussing on asylum and migrations challenges and EASO’s current and future role in addressing them.