The EMN Slovakia National Conference Sustainable Labour Mobility in Action: Bilateral Pathways for a Prosperous Slovakia, which took place in Bratislava on 11 November 2025, initiated a discussion on how Slovakia can respond to labour shortages in key sectors through regulated, predictable and mutually beneficial bilateral partnerships with countries outside the European Union. Held under the auspices of the State Secretary of the Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs and Family of the Slovak Republic, Mr Marián Valentovič, the event brought together 80 participants and 13 speakers from 16 countries – policymakers, migration experts, employers, representatives of public administration, embassies and international organisations.
The conference presented functional examples and models of bilateral cooperation in labour migration between EU Member States and non-EU countries, which may serve as inspiration for further expert discussions and reflections in the context of the Slovak Republic. The Slovak Republic currently has only limited experience in designing, negotiating and implementing such cooperation, which could partly address the significant shortage of workers on the Slovak labour market while at the same time ensuring the protection and rights of migrant workers.
What was discussed at the conference?
- Labour mobility as a tool for economic resilience – experts emphasised that labour migration is not a marginal topic, but a pillar of economic growth and social inclusion, with bilateral cooperation playing an important role in this area.
- Types and characteristics of bilateral labour mobility agreements – what such agreements may include, what form and elements they may have, and which countries they can be developed with.
- Examples of good practice – presentations from EU Member States as well as from countries of origin showed that coordination, skills development, protection of the rights of foreign workers and well-designed mobility schemes bring concrete benefits for all parties.
- Panel discussions focused on attracting labour from non-EU countries and building sustainable bilateral pathways, drawing on examples from Uzbekistan, India and the Philippines.
Some of the presentations are available below:
Vassiliy Yuzhanin, Migration law expert & Chief of Mission, IOM Cyprus, Cyprus
Ways to build strong (bilateral) labour mobility pathways
Elisa Filippetti,Officer, Ministry of Labour and Social Policies, Italy
Attracting workforce from non-EU countries: perspectives from EU Member States
François Faye, Enterpreneurship Expert, Belgian Development Agency (Enabel), Senegal
Attracting workforce from non-EU countries: perspectives from EU Member States
Nada Senada Plestenjak, Coordinator of Info Point for Foreigners, Employment Service of Slovenia, Slovenia
Attracting workforce from non-EU countries: perspectives from EU Member States
Haben Gebremedhin, Consultant, Headquarters of the Federal Employment Agency, Germany
Attracting workforce from non-EU countries: perspectives from EU Member States (presentation upon request)
Bakhtiyor Ibragimov, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, Embassy of the Republic of Uzbekistan, Austria
Building regulated, predictable and mutually beneficial bilateral pathways: insights from non-EU countries
Short videos with the speakers are available on the IOM Slovakia YouTube channel.
Podcasts from the EMN Slovakia National Conference 2025 (in English):
What did participants say about the event?
“I can immediately apply the information from the conference in my work.”
“Thank you, I truly appreciated that the conference brought together international expertise with the aim of facilitating learning about migration governance mechanisms. It was very well structured and organised, and I learned a lot.”
“Excellent organisation. The format of the event matched the programme.”
The conference was organised by the International Organization for Migration (IOM), which serves as the coordinator of EMN Slovakia, in cooperation with the Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs and Family of the Slovak Republic, which is a member of EMN Slovakia. With the support of EMN Slovakia, the conference was followed the next day by a meeting of the Interministerial Commission for Labour Migration and the Integration of Foreigners (MEKOMIC), an advisory body to the Minister of Labour, Social Affairs and Family, which plans to play a significant role in shaping Slovakia’s policies in the field of labour migration and integration.
