The constant and prolonged influx of immigrants to the Azores over the past decades, the increasing complexity of international migrant systems, nurtured by the ideal of a multicultural and multi-ethnic society, has posed a range of challenges to the different social and political players. The Regional Directorate for the Communities, a service that operates under the direct auspices of the Office of the Vice-President of the Azores Regional Government, plays a fundamental and driving role in this context. Its main areas of activity essentially focus on strengthening the cultural and economic ties between migrant communities and the Autonomous Region of the Azores, with the aim of ensuring and promoting their full integration. The promotion of means of cooperation with other Portuguese and foreign public and private entities for the purpose of promoting the preservation of the cultural identity and the interculturality of communities of migrants living on the archipelago has served as a guide for the activities of the Regional Directorate for the Communities.

In order to better understand the migration phenomenon in the Region, and to propose the implementation of the Regional Government’s migration policies, the Regional Directorate for the Communities has over the years conducted studies into the various dynamics of the phenomenon, in partnership with the University of the Azores.

The Regional Directorate for the Communities is available for any clarifications or referrals on issues concerning immigration and immigrant integration in the region. In situations of discrimination, it also provides guidance and referrals to the Equality and Anti-Racial Discrimination Commission, part of the High Commission for Migration, which is the body specializing in fighting racial discrimination in Portugal.

For information about the events run by the Regional Directorate for the Communities, aimed at integration and interculturality, we suggest following their social media at
– https://facebook.com/DirecaoRegionalDasComunidades;
– https://twitter.com/DasDirecao;
– https://youtube.com/user/GovernodosAcores; and
– subscribing to the Migrant Bulletin Report.