Stage 4: Consultation

Stakeholder partnerships are very important in policymaking. Migration has many stakeholders and an effective policymaking process will benefit from structured, thoughtful engagement throughout. Stakeholders will bring important contributions to each stage of the policy cycle, though consideration needs to be given to targeting this engagement. For this reason, Figure 4 in the Policy cycle and policymaking realities portrays consultation as both a stage and a process that follows throughout the full policymaking cycle. To illustrate this, the discussion on What frames and influences migration policy? references the role of stakeholders in issue identification. As well, The phases of policy formulation describes dialogue with stakeholders as a key component of the policy formulation stage. Therefore, while this section focuses on a consultation process as a distinct stage, the reflections are relevant for all stakeholder consultations. It would be fair to say that if any policymakers reached this point in the policymaking process with no stakeholder engagement, they would be at a distinct disadvantage.

See more on the need for a whole-of-society approach and in particular “broad multi-stakeholder partnerships” in Developing migration policy, Also, see Actors and partnerships for migration for a discussion of stakeholders that are relevant to international engagement on migration.