Governance and obstacles in the reception and social and labour integration of asylum seekers in Spain

Abstract

Changes in migratory flows have transformed Spain from a country of emigration to one of the main destinations for international migration. And it has also become one of the most important European countries in the reception of asylum seekers and refugees in the last decade. With an unprepared reception system, the State has faced this challenge by decentralising socio-labour integration responsibilities to third sector entities. This article aims to analyse the institutional approach to the management and integration of asylum seekers, studying changes in the management of the reception and integration system for this group. Through documentary analysis and descriptive statistics, we observe a greater streamlining of certain processes, particularly after the arrival of asylum seekers from Ukraine in 2022. However, structural deficiencies remain, hindering the processes of matching labour supply and demand.