The Regional Allocation of Asylum Seekers in Greece: A Multiple Criteria Decision Analysis Approach

Abstract

One of the long-term challenges for policy makers in host countries of migrants is the optimal geographical allocation of the migrant population so as to strengthen integration outcomes and serve the crucial goal of social inclusion. The political debate on the appropriate placement policy of newcomers has continued for years after the large-scale inflows of asylum seekers in Greece. This paper focuses on the evaluation of the dispersal policy of asylum seekers in Greece as implemented under the reception and accommodation scheme. Furthermore, it provides decision makers with an alternative dispersal policy framework driven by the integration outcomes of the already established migrant population in the country. The research encompasses Eurostat NUTS 2 annual data for a choice upon availability of the Zaragoza Integration Indicators and the immigrant population indicator for the thirteen Greek regions. The data cover a ten-year period from 2010 to 2019, and they are analysed with the multiple criteria decision-making method PROMETHEE. In addition to desk research, fieldwork has been conducted to illuminate the results of the model. The paper extends the literature on the governance of migration and contributes to the planning of migrant integration policies in their host countries.