The role of sub-national actors in coordinative Europeanisation: insights from the digitalisation of asylum services

Abstract

Coordinative Europeanisation is a powerful frame to explain the rapid response of EU institutions in times of permanent emergency. So far, though, little is known about sub-national actors’ role in this process. Moving away from a state-centric approach, this article investigates the role of sub-national actors through the case study of the digital provision of services to asylum seekers. Given the field’s high salience and state-centric nature, this article elucidates the critical role of European sub-national actors, particularly at the municipality level, to accelerate the digital provision of services to refugees. Comparing 3 European cities (Paris, Palermo and Malaga), we argue that sub-national actors can play a role in coordinative Europeanisation and that 2 main mechanisms may enable it. In the cases observed, discursive coordination around humanitarian duty facilitated the emergence of similar digital solutions across countries. Subsequently, horizontal and vertical networking was used by sub-national actors to legitimise their actions and enhance their anchoring in processes of coordinative Europeanisation.