EPIM has awarded a three-year grant to the European Council on Refugees and Exiles (ECRE) for them to sustain and further develop the Asylum Information Database (AIDA) that was establishes through an EPIM grant in 2012-2015.
AIDA documents the situation of asylum systems through information provided from experts in the field in 18 European countries. It provides the only comprehensive information database where perspectives from non-governmental organisations (NGOs) working in the field shed light on asylum practice.
AIDA is producing knowledge and awareness on asylum in Europe as follows:
- Information from the field is provided by NGOs active in refugee protection and in daily engagement with asylum seekers and refugees throughout the process.
- Asylum information made available from governmental and EU sources such as Eurostat is analysed and explained in an accessible manner that allows for a better understanding of official data and for identifying gaps in official information collection processes.
- Through a common methodological framework on the implementation of the EU asylum acquis and relevant European standards, the database strengthens the work of ECRE member organisations at the national level and enhances their knowledge and expertise at the EU level.
- Through its legal briefings, AIDA bridges evidence-based research with advocacy and legal reasoning by identifying and commenting on key gaps in the CEAS.