E.g., 06/04/2024
E.g., 06/04/2024
Michael Kegels
MPI Authors

Michael Kegels

Michael Kegels is Operational Director of Fedasil, the Belgian reception agency, where he also serves as a member of the Board of Directors. He is responsible for the management of the Belgian reception system (capacity: 35,000 places in January 2016), the voluntary return policy (approximately 4,000 returns per year), and the resettlement and relocation programme. In 2011 he founded the European Platform for Reception Agencies (EPRA), which has grown to be a high-level network and platform for exchanges on the topic of reception. He also sponsored the creation of the Common Support Initiative (CSI), a platform for voluntary return.

Mr. Kegels is part of the European Commission database of independent experts in the field of justice, freedom, and security. He has been a civil servant since 2001, and has worked in a variety of functions in several asylum agencies.

He studied history, and holds master’s degrees in international politics and public management.

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Recent Activity

Reports
February 2016

Getting the Balance Right: Strengthening Asylum Reception Capacity at National and EU Levels

With arrivals of asylum seekers overwhelming the resources and institutional capacity of some European Union Member States, this report examines the reception capacity challenges faced by national reception systems. Authored by the Operational Director of Belgium's reception agency, the report offers recommendations to improve coordination across Member States in ways that could effectively better utilize existing capacity.