Data-Driven Matching of Refugees and Cities - An Implementation Guide

Re:Match - Relocation via Matching

More information and reports and of our project Re:Match - Relocation via Matching is available here .

DATENovember 2024
AUTHORSElisa Ertl (BGP), Laura Celeste, PhD (Pairity), Giulia Fellin (BGP), Lea Rau (BGP)
CO-AUTHORSKatja Wagner (BGP), Craig Damian Smith, PhD (Pairity)

The implementation guide provides a practical resource for systematically applying data-driven matching between refugees and cities. This algorithm-based procedure aligns refugees’ backgrounds, needs, and preferences with service availability and capacities of host cities, contributing to innovative, direct relocation and reception processes for people seeking protection into cities. The guide is built upon key learnings from the Re:Match project, which piloted this matching-based approach over the past two years, formulates recommendations for implementation and replication and highlights application potential.

The guide outlines the main steps of the matching process:

  1. Co-designing the match criteria and algorithm
  2. Data collection: cities
  3. Data collection: refugees
  4. Generating Matches: How the algorithm works
  5. Match-results delivery & relocation
  6. Continuous developmental evaluation

The publication is intended as a practical tool for experts in civil society, international organizations, and governmental bodies at the EU and national levels interested in using data-driven matching to enhance distribution mechanisms in relocation, resettlement, and other humanitarian programs.