A New Migration Space? Transnational Perspectives on Labour Migration from Asia to Central and Eastern Europe

International Conference & Roundtable on labour migration from Asia to Central and Eastern Europe.

In Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), including Croatia, migration has long been shaped predominantly by emigration. In recent times, however, CEE countries have increasingly become destinations for migrant workers due to labour market needs. In particular, the rise of migrants from South (East) Asia marks a notable shift in migration dynamics. As global competition for labour intensifies, labour migrants not only move from origin to destination countries or circulate between them but also move within entire regions and often continue their journey across continents. Recognising CEE as a dynamic and interactive migration space, rather than solely a region of emigration, is essential for sustainable migration governance.

Source and destination countries are connected not only through recruitment systems established by state actors, employment agencies and companies, but also through individual labour mobility, social networks, flows and transfers of financial and intangible remittances, and migration diplomacy that extends beyond state borders. Sustainable migration governance and migrant integration in CEE require fair and transparent recruitment systems, clear political frameworks, evidence-based policymaking, and stronger regional coordination. They also require cooperation between receiving and sending states to balance different interests and concerns. Integration in the economy and society – access to employment and social infrastructure, including housing, education, and healthcare – is shaped not only by policies and by economic and political conditions in source and destination countries, but also by diverse non-state actors, including migrant networks and cultural practices, and by political narratives. The transnational connections that migrants often maintain also shape their integration trajectories.

Finally, the new labour migration from Asian source countries raises questions about how different migrant communities experience migration and integration. What cross-sector alliances between governments, employers, trade unions, civil society, and migrant community actors are needed? What knowledge, information, and social networks do Asian migrants bring to Central and Eastern Europe? Finally, domestic populations throughout the region have often migrated themselves. They have navigated integration into other societies while maintaining transnational ties. Can such lived experience offer resources for more inclusive migration governance and successful integration?

After welcome addresses by the Ivo Pilar Institute and the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, Dr. Caroline Hornstein Tomić (Ivo Pilar Institute) and Prof. Dr. Ulf Brunnbauer (IOS) introduce the topic. Two panels and a roundtable follow:

Panel I: CEE as an emerging dynamic migration space? Perspectives from new immigration destinations in CEE
Moderator: Prof. Dr. Ulf Brunnbauer (IOS).

Panel II: Perspectives on migration & development in sending and receiving countries – aligned, or far apart? 
Moderator: Dr. Caroline Hornstein Tomić. 

Roundtable: How to shape migration governance transnationally? Discussion with representatives from public, business and civic sectors, and international organisations.
Moderator: Ana Budimir Župić.

Organizers and Partners: Institute of Social Sciences Ivo Pilar, Zagreb; Konrad Adenauer Foundation (KAS), Office Croatia and Slovenia, Zagreb; Leibniz Institute for East and Southeast European Studies (IOS), Regensburg; ERSTE Foundation, Vienna; THE CIVICS Innovation Hub, Bonn, Zagreb, Sofia; Znanje na djelu, Zagreb