“Integration of migrants in European rural areas: developing a policy response”, in Migration in EU Rural Areas, Science for Policy report by the Joint Research Centre (JRC)

This report provides a quantitative overview of migration in rural areas for the entire EU. It includes a description of socio-demographic characteristics and main indicators of integration of migrants living in rural areas and employed in EU agriculture. More geographically detailed analyses for Spain and Italy explore patterns of concentration of migrants in specific Local Administrative Units in relation to local characteristics of agriculture. Finally, the report describes how the salience of and attitudes towards immigration differ when considering respondents living in cities, medium and small size towns, and rural areas. Overall, the report contributes to raising awareness of the poorly studied phenomenon of migration in rural areas. Migrants living in rural areas and working in agriculture, despite representing a relatively small group if compared to migrants in cities, have a fundamental role in sustaining certain types of agricultural production in constant demand of temporary work. At the same time, they tend to fare worse for most indicators of integration not only in respect of natives but also in respect of migrants living in cities and towns. Given these characteristics, migrants in rural areas would deserve special attention when designing integration policies.