Kraków’s Multiculturism and Migration Observatory (OWiM/ MMO) is a joint initiative of the Municipality of Kraków and the Kraków University of Economics designed to strengthen the city’s capacity to understand and manage migration-drive change. Established in July 2019, the Observatory produces detailed analytical reports, initiates long-term studies of immigrant communities and convenes regular seminars to translate research into actionable insights for local and regional stakeholders. By addressing an evidence gap around migration dynamics, OWiM supports more inclusive urban governance, helping the city identify integration barriers, recognise migrants’ social and economic contributions, and develop recommendations to improve migration and multiculturism management.
Building the evidence base to better manage migration and multiculturism in Kraków
Abstract
The Multiculturism and Migration Observatory’s core objective is to analyse migration processes and multicultural transformations in Kraków’s urban space and strengthen evidence-based management of these dynamics at the city and regional scale. More specifically, the Observatory aims to monitor and analyse migration and multicultural change in the city, assess migrants’ social, economic and cultural potential and their contribution to Kraków's development, and diagnose challenges and barriers to integration for migrants living in Kraków. It also provides recommendations to improve migration and multiculturism management to maximise individual and collective potential of immigrants and ethnic minorities, and creates a space for cooperation among academics, municipal actors and others working on migration and inclusion. These objectives support inclusive growth in the city by strengthening institutions’ ability to better target opportunity gaps for residents with a migrant background or from an ethnic minority and to integrate evidence into city policy and service delivery.
Multiculturism and Migration Observatory summary
Country: Poland
City: Kraków
EU member state: Yes
Geographic scale: City
City size: Midsize (city 800 000 and FUA 1 490 000 residents)
Date launched: July 2019
Current status: Ongoing
Policy pillar(s): Education; Labour markets; Housing and the Built Environment; Public services
Target group(s): People with a migrant background; Ethnic minorities (including Roma)
Funding and budget:
Total budget: EUR
Funding sources: Local funding
EU funds/programmes: Not applicable
The Observatory is designed to respond to a lack of data and evidence on migration in the city, and to be a diagnostic and monitoring instrument. It conducts analyses of migration and multicultural change, initiates long-term studies of immigrants in Kraków, and synthesises findings into accessible outputs to support city decision making. A distinguishing feature is its emphasis on triangulating multiple sources: its major outputs include detailed reports that analyse migration processes and resulting social transformations, helping to build a shared understanding of who is affected, where challenges concentrate, and why barriers persist.
Rather than operating as a single-service programme, OWiM helps Kraków prioritise policy attention by identifying key integration barriers, areas of spatial concentration of migrants, and domains where targeted improvements in governance and services can maximise social and economic potential. For example, OWiM’s regular “Economic and Forced Migrants in Kraków” reporting tracks changes in the structure of the foreign population. It also examines legal situations and participation in education and in the city and regional economy to support policy prioritisation across multiple inclusive growth pillars.
OWiM is structured to support a multi-actor governance model, integrating academic, municipal and regional actors where relevant. It was created via an agreement between the Municipality of Kraków and the Kraków University of Economics, and is embedded within Krakow’s Center for Advanced Studies of Population and Religion (CASPAR) to better mobilise research capacity and networks. Mobilisation is also visible in how OWiM connects with city-facing platforms and partners to disseminate evidence, for example through seminars and presentations with stakeholders.
Implementation takes the form of regular reporting and in-person engagement formats that are intended to translate analysis into usable guidance. This includes detailed reports on migration trends and policy-relevant domains (economy, education participation, legal situations, and spatial concentrations); topical reports responding to emerging challenges in public services such as health-care provision for both economic and forced migrants and regular seminars that present findings and convene relevant stakeholders, creating an applied interface between evidence and practice. Stage 5 – Monitor, learn and adapt
Monitoring is built into OWiM’s core function, to continuously update the evidence base through recurring reports and ongoing studies, enabling the city and partners to learn over time and refine responses as migration patterns shift. OWiM’s publications demonstrate an iterative approach with new annual editions and thematic deep-dives reflecting evolving policy questions. A recent city communication underscores the policy relevance of these outputs by highlighting how OWiM reporting tracks foreign resident populations, including forced migrants from Ukraine, and supports discussion of changes in migrations structures over time.
Engage partnerships and stakeholders to strengthen legitimacy and capacity. Joint municipal-academic delivery which is built into OWiM’s governance model shows how municipalities can partner with universities to deepen analytical capacity while keeping outputs policy relevant and locally grounded.
Use evidence to adapt policies and measures. By producing evidence that links to multiple inclusive growth pillars such as education, labour market integration, and service access, OWiM helps Kraków to integrate inclusion of migrants across departments rather than siloing migration as a standalone topic.
Multiculturism and Migration Observatory (OWiM/ MMO) Website: https://owim.uek.krakow.pl/index.php/en/
Kraków City OWiM information page: https://www.bip.krakow.pl/?dok_id=%20124012
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