The Plenary Hall of the Arrecife City Council hosted this Thursday the first ordinary session of the Arrecife Sectoral Immigration Council (CSIA), following its pioneering establishment in the Canary Islands last February at the initiative of the Councilor for Social Welfare, Immigration, and Equality, Maite Corujo.
This first meeting marks the effective start of the participatory work of this body, which aims to promote the active integration of the migrant population into the social, cultural, and political life of the city. Its creation has had the important support of the Directorate of Social Welfare, Equality, Youth, Childhood, and Families of the Government of the Canary Islands and the Canarias Convive program team.
In its first session, the CSIA addressed fundamental issues such as the admission of new social entities that have requested their incorporation, the presentation of the structure and internal functioning of the Council, as established in its regulations, and the proposal and approval of a joint work methodology that will guide its future actions.
"Inclusive policies"
Maite Corujo highlighted "the excellent impact" that the meeting has had and stressed that "as a municipal entity, we fulfill our obligation to implement inclusive local public policies." Corujo added that the Council "will be an instrument that will allow, in addition to strengthening the associative fabric, to give visibility to the different migrant communities present in the municipality and generate spaces for active listening and collective construction."
With more than 38% of its population coming from other countries, Arrecife is thus positioned at the forefront of social inclusion in the Canary Islands. The creation of the CSIA, approved by the Municipal Plenary on September 27, 2024, after a public consultation process initiated in June of the same year, represents a firm step towards the consolidation of a model of participatory and multicultural governance.
With this inaugural session, the CSIA begins its journey as an advisory and active participation body, "with the mission of contributing to the construction of a more just, plural, and cohesive city, where
all voices, especially those of migrants, are heard and taken into account in municipal decision-making."
The social groups that are part of this body, in which the Cabildo de Lanzarote is also represented, are to date the Social and Cultural Association for Women Mararía, Cáritas, Tribarte, Sal y Caña, Acciones Unidas, Emerlan, Tocororo, Fedemilanz, Cruz Roja Lanzarote, and Médicos del Mundo.