| Advisory Group Meetings Highlights | | https://www.eulisa.europa.eu/Newsroom/News/Pages/Advisory-Group-Meetings-Highlights.aspx | Advisory Group Meetings Highlights | 04/03/2021 08:00:00 | <p>The 36<sup>th</sup> Eurodac Advisory Group and the 35<sup>th</sup> SIS II Advisory Group (AG) meetings were hosted by eu-LISA on 2 and 3 March 2021 respectively.</p><p>Convened in a digital format, the meetings dealt with the election of the chairperson for the Eurodac AG and deputy chairpersons for both the Eurodac AG and the SIS II AG, and updated participants on the state of play of the two large-scale IT systems.</p><p>Lorenzo Rinaldi (Italy) was re-elected as chairperson of the Eurodac AG and Franc Kumer (Slovenia) was re-elected as the Eurodac AG Deputy Chairperson. The deputy chairperson of the SIS II AG is Erwin Zweers (the Netherlands).</p><p>The Multi-System Exercise 2020 report, the impact of Brexit on the usage of the two systems, the status of the SIS recast implementation, and Eurodac-Interoperability requirements were also on the agenda. Other topics included the integration of Cyprus in SIS II testing activities, as well as the 2021 training plans for both systems.</p><p>More than 100 Member State representatives, observers and Agency staff attended the meetings.</p><p>The next SIS II AG meeting will take place on 5 May, followed by the Eurodac AG meeting on 6 May.</p><p>Each AG meeting contributes to informing all involved stakeholders about the latest developments and improving the IT systems that form the Schengen Area's digital resilience and strengthen Europe's internal security.<br></p><p><br></p> | | |
| EU Justice and Home Affairs Agencies’ Response To the COVID-19 Pandemic | | https://www.eulisa.europa.eu/Newsroom/News/Pages/EU-Justice-and-Home-Affairs-Agencies’-Response-To-the-COVID-19-Pandemic.aspx | EU Justice and Home Affairs Agencies’ Response To the COVID-19 Pandemic | 17/02/2021 08:45:00 | <p>Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, nine Justice and Home Affairs (JHA) agencies (<a href="https://cepol.europa.eu/">CEPOL</a>,
<a href="https://easo.europa.eu/">EASO</a>,
<a href="https://eige.europa.eu/">EIGE</a>,
<a href="http://www.emcdda.europa.eu/">EMCDDA</a>,
<a href="https://eulisa.europa.eu/">eu-LISA</a>,
<a href="file:///C:/Users/popessa/Desktop/jhaa/Eurojust">Eurojust</a>,
<a href="https://www.europol.europa.eu/">Europol</a>,
<a href="https://fra.europa.eu/en">FRA</a> and
<a href="https://frontex.europa.eu/">Frontex</a>) have been supporting the Member States and EU institutions in meeting the unprecedented challenges resulting from the outbreak of the virus - each agency in its respective area of work.</p><p>In the past months, all JHA agencies have taken the necessary measures to ensure business continuity and uninterrupted operational support. At the same time, the Justice and Home Affairs Agencies' Network (JHAAN), under the chairmanship of Eurojust, has initiated a mutual dialogue to share the agencies' experiences in dealing with the pandemic and to consider new avenues for closer cooperation with key stakeholders inside and outside the EU.</p><p>
<a href="/Newsroom/News/Documents/20200715%20JHAAN%20Joint%20Paper.pdf"><img src="/Newsroom/News/PublishingImages/20200715_infographic_th.jpg" alt="" style="float:left;margin-right:10px;margin-bottom:5px;max-width:220px;border:1px solid #d1d3d4;" /></a>The agencies' individual and joint efforts to deal with the impact of the pandemic have been captured in a
<a href="https://www.eurojust.europa.eu/sites/default/files/2021-01/jhaan_joint_paper_update_december_2020_final.pdf">Joint Paper on the COVID-19 response by the JHA agencies</a>, which was formally endorsed by the Heads of JHA agencies during a videoconference held on 9 July and subsequently <strong>updated in December 2020</strong>. During their meeting, the Heads discussed the latest developments, including the fundamental rights implications of government COVID-19 measures, the quick adaptation of organised crime to the changing circumstances and the recent surge in drug use, domestic violence and child abuse.</p><p>To more effectively tackle these and other issues related to the protection of citizens and freedoms, there is a need for increased interagency cooperation in the field of digitalisation and also for sustainable financial resources in the coming years. </p><p>The COVID-19 pandemic coincides with the 10<sup>th</sup> anniversary of the Justice and Home Affairs agencies' Network. In the past decade, this family of JHA agencies joined forces as guardians of the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice. Together, they contributed to the implementation of EU's objectives in the fields of migration, asylum and external border management, the fight against serious organised crime, drug trafficking and terrorism, gender equality and respect for fundamental rights.</p><p>
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<strong>Further reading</strong></p><ul><li>
<a href="https://www.eurojust.europa.eu/states-and-partners/eu-partners/jha-agencies-network" target="_blank">JHA Coordination</a></li><li>
<a href="https://www.eurojust.europa.eu/updated-joint-paper-jha-agencies-covid-19-response" target="_blank">Response of JHA agencies to COVID-19</a></li></ul>
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| Interoperability Conference to Tackle Implementing Regulations at Member State Level | | https://www.eulisa.europa.eu/Newsroom/News/Pages/Interoperability-Conference-to-Tackle-Implementing-Regulations-at-Member-State-Level.aspx | Interoperability Conference to Tackle Implementing Regulations at Member State Level | 17/02/2021 08:00:00 | <p>On 17 February 2021, eu-LISA took part in an online Interoperability Conference that reunited Member States, the European Commission, JHA Agencies and part of the Agency's governance structure.</p><p>As a follow up to the 2020 event organised by the Swedish and Finnish Smart Border Team, this edition of the conference will focus on the implementation of Interoperability Regulations at Member State level, taking into account the legal, operational and technical developments since the Helsinki Conference last year.</p><p>The conference is a joint effort of the Interoperability Programme Management Board (IO PMB; started operations in October 2019), eu-LISA and the Hungarian Smart Borders Team.</p><p>Zsolt Szolnoki, chairperson of eu-LISA's Management Board, and head of the Hungarian Smart Borders Team, declared: "<em>The proper and timely implementation of the Interoperability Regulations is a key element in finalising the whole Interoperability Programme by the end of 2023. Today, we are providing a platform for the Member States' projects to learn from each other how to best use this new tool in border, law enforcement, visa and immigration procedures</em>."</p><p>"<em>I believe we all see Borders & Security as well as Interoperability conferences from the past as a very valuable and important fora for the exchange of information and good practice between Member States. These are very important for the successful implementation of the Interoperability project and help Member States strengthen their cooperation which, ultimately, is also one of the key factors for the success of the Interoperability programme</em>", complemented Andrej Bračko, chairperson of the IO PMB.</p><p>The aim of the conference is to support Member States in understanding and implementing all Interoperability-related projects, in order to meet the 2023 go-live deadline.</p><p>As Interoperability will span all large-scale IT systems, the event brought together legal, operation and technical experts from the Interoperability teams of eu-LISA and the Member States, from the EES, ETIAS, ECRIS-TCN, SIS and VIS teams, from the European Commission, as well as Member States'/JHA Agencies project managers and eu-LISA Management Board members.</p><p>Topics addressed included the best use of the new interoperability architecture at Member State level and how to resolve the challenge of parallel developments for the Interoperability Components and for the new large-scale IT systems (EES, ETIAS, ECRIS-TCN).</p><p> </p><p><strong>Further Reading</strong></p><ul><li><a href="https://eulisa.europa.eu/Activities/Interoperability">Interoperability</a></li><li><a href="https://eulisa.europa.eu/About-Us/Organisation">eu-LISA's management structure</a><br></li><li>eu-LISA and the IT systems under its remit (<a href="https://discover.eulisa.europa.eu/">https://discover.eulisa.europa.eu</a>)<br></li></ul><p><br></p> | | |
