Strategic Communication in Support of Migrants Integration in Host Communities

Abstract

International actors, both states and supra-state organizations, face certain challenges in managing the migration phenomenon. Among these challenges, in the present paper, we have chosen to focus on those that may emerge following the relocation itself, starting from the premise that the way in which the integration of migrants takes place within the host community is a decisive factor for the type of effects that can be generated in the security environment. The purpose of the article is to identify the means by which the migration management system can be improved, in order to support states, governments and authorities in their efforts to maintain public order and the state of peace. The analysis of the concept of strategic communication (StratCom) reveals aspects, dimensions, parameters and frameworks that indicate its relevance and usefulness in the smooth development of the process of social integration of emigrants, and the present study is aimed at identifying these characteristics as well as at modelling a StratCom framework that is generally applicable to any scenario, in support of governments, host communities and migrants alike. Finally, we will adapt the general working framework to a specific one, focused on the integration of Ukrainian migrants within the Romanian community, in the context of the Russia-Ukraine conflict near Romania’s borders, given the actual situation that needs to be managed by the Romanian state so that possible tensions between the two social groups can be avoided.