The Scalabrini Migration Center (SMC) is part of a multi-country, three-year research project which is probing the characteristics and policy impacts of temporary transnational migration between Europe and Asia (EURA-NET). The participating countries are Belgium, China, Finland, Germany, Greece, Hungary, India, The Netherlands, the Philippines, Thailand, Turkey and Ukraine. Dr Pirkko Pitkanen of the University of Tampere, Finland is coordinator of the project. EURA-NET is funded by the European Commission’s 7th Framework Programme for 2014-2017. The launch and the first meeting of the project were held at the University of Tampere on February 6-7, 2014.

SMC launched the project in the Philippines on June 18, 2014 at the Richmonde Hotel, Pasig City. Prior to the program, SMC convened the first meeting of the National Advisory Board of EURA-NET Philippines. The five members of the National Advisory Board are Secretary Imelda Nicolas, Chairperson of the Commission on Filipinos Overseas; Dr. Jorge Tigno, Professor, University of the Philippines and Convenor of the Philippine Migration Research Network; Ms. Carmelita Nuqui, President, Philippine Migrants Rights Watch and Executive Director of the Development Action for Women Network; Mr. Margarito Raynera, Programme Officer, Delegation of the European Union to the Philippines; and Mr. Ricardo Casco, National Programme Officer of the International Organization for Migration in the Philippines.

About 30 participants from government agencies, academic institutions, international organizations and civil society organizations attended the launch. Prof. Graziano Battistella, director of SMC, offered not only words of welcome to the participants but also posed some questions about temporary migration that he hoped the research project would shed light on. In her message, Secretary Imelda Nicolasconsidered the EURA-NET Project as “another step forward in providing a more comprehensive and incisive understanding of the changing characteristics and trends of temporary transnational migration.” An overview of the EURA-NET Project, highlights from the Philippine report and research plans were presented by Dr. Asis. Two presentations – the experience of academic exchange between the University of the Philippines and University of Kassel in Germany by Dr. Ma. Cecilia Gastardo-Conaco, Professor, University of the Philippines, and the resumption of au pair migration from the Philippines to Europe by Ms Jennifer Hagan, Visiting Researcher at the Scalabrini Migration Center – provided additional information on some aspects of Philippines-Europe temporary transnational migration. During the open forum, the ambiguities surrounding au pair migration invited many comments. In his closing message, Dr. Jorge Tigno underlined the importance of culture in understanding migration and mobility between the two regions.