Rabat, November 26, 2025 – CAFRAD today signed a partnership agreement with the African Migration Studies Laboratory, represented by its President and Research Director, Prof. Dr. Roméo GBABUIDI, based in Madrid, Spain.

“There was no better way to close the year 2025 than by signing this partnership between our two institutions. CAFRAD is a true reference point, working tirelessly to advance Africa,” said Prof. Dr. Roméo GBABUIDI during the official press briefing that followed the ceremony.

Through this collaboration, CAFRAD aims to strengthen its support for African initiatives in basic and applied research, action-research, as well as training and skills development across the continent. “On these two fronts, we have chosen to focus on the geopolitics of migration and the specificities of irregular migration. This is a crucial issue in relations between Africa and Europe. Through a holistic approach, we want to show, with this partnership, that this issue goes far beyond socio-economic dimensions and employment. It also concerns governance and Africa’s capacity to train, retain, and value its talents,” explained Dr. Coffi Dieudonné ASSOUVI during his remarks.

The partnership aims to produce a comprehensive study highlighting the real challenges of migration geopolitics in Africa and Europe. It also serves as an advocacy effort toward Europe, encouraging a profound revision of asylum and immigration policies, currently guided by both the European Union and its member states, with the goal of establishing mutually beneficial migration dynamics between the two continents.

The African Migration Studies Laboratory, for its part, commits to promoting field-based research grounded in reliable data, as well as renewing discourses and narratives related to migration. It aims to train leaders and all civil society actors involved in the continent’s development. This partnership also seeks to serve as a bridge between regions of the world, as no sustainable solution can emerge without genuine multilateral cooperation.

“This partnership will allow us to take concrete and programmatic actions. Our two institutions will be able to develop joint initiatives and tangible projects capable of providing answers—or at least avenues of solutions—for our States. The goal is to achieve a proper balance in migration management: controlled, balanced, and beneficial migration for all parties,” concluded Prof. Dr. Roméo GBABUIDI.