13.5. improve recognition of skills obtained abroad;

13.6. take into consideration the special needs of vulnerable groups, such as women, children, including unaccompanied children, elderly people, persecuted religious minorities, people with disabilities, members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer, intersex (LGBTQI+) community, stateless people and others, who need specific support in order to successfully integrate into the host country;

13.7. create spaces to bring migrants, refugees and the local community together;

13.8. improve financial settings, with a person-centred approach to integration support and adaptation of national services to take into account specific needs and circumstances;

13.9. develop targeted housing policies for affordable and decent accommodation;

13.10. invest in social cohesion with partnerships between private investors, public authorities and civil society organisations;

13.11. match migrant skills with job opportunities to support access to the labour market;

13.12. develop effective communication strategies to support integration, including a more positive narrative towards refugees and asylum seekers;

13.13. ensure respect for refugees’ and migrants’ dignity in the media, while avoiding messages that are stigmatising, xenophobic, racist, alarmist or inaccurate;

13.14. develop welcoming programmes at municipal level, emphasising diversity as an advantage;

13.15. enhance public health support for vulnerable refugees and migrants.

14. Urban planning needs to be reconsidered towards enhancing multicultural and intergenerationalsolidarity at local level. Projects aimed at bringing together the ageing population and the newly arrivingmigrants and refugees need to be supported, including through specific actions to facilitate the integration ofrefugees and migrants and to help elderly people cope with loneliness and dependency due to old age.Bringing different generations together is essential.

15. Care-related challenges in the urban and rural settings would need special consideration. Immigrationcan be one means through which Europe could fulfil its current and future labour shortages in care provisionoccupations, thereby decreasing the caregiver support ratio. According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), foreign-born workers already make up around 20% of the currentcaregiver workforce, or even more, taking into account the large informal and home-based care provision. Ingeneral, most foreign-born long-term care workers immigrated through non-economic channels, includingfamily reunification, student visas, general migration routes for non-specialised workers, and internationalprotection.

16. The Assembly strongly encourages member States to develop policies to attract high-skilled migrants toenhance Europe’s capacity to meet future challenges. The European Union member States and candidatecountries should support the implementation of the EU Blue Card (Directive (EU) 2021/1883 of the EuropeanParliament and of the Council of 20 October 2021 on the conditions of entry and residence of third-countrynationals for the purpose of highly qualified employment), which is a work and residence permit for non-European Union/European Economic Area nationals that provides comprehensive socio-economic rights anda path towards permanent residence and European Union citizenship.

17. Finally, States should foster positive communication and information in local communities and counterhate speech in public discourse. A shift from emergency approaches to tackle immigration to structural andsustainable approaches is crucial.

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