Adapting to Crisis: The Governance of Public Services for Migrants and Refugees during COVID-19 in Four European Cities

The lack of access to basic services played a big part among the key effects of COVID-19 on migrants and refugees. This paper examines the governance dynamics behind public services for migrants and refugees to understand how COVID-19 has impacted them and what accounts for different levels of adaptive capacity. It employs a mixed methods approach, using egocentric network analysis and qualitative interviews to compare the service ecosystems in four European cities from 2020 to 2022 (Birmingham, Larissa, Malaga, and Palermo). The paper explores the impact of two conditions on the service ecosystems' ability to adapt to the pandemic: the structure of governance and the presence of dynamic capabilities. We argue that the ability of local governments to manage pandemic challenges is highly dependent on the formal distribution of comprehensive competences across various levels (the structure of governance), and the quality of network cooperation between different administrations and civil society (dynamic capabilities). Our analysis reveals that while both conditions are critical for the level of adaptive capacity in public services' provision, the structure of governance is more likely to act as a constraint or trigger for coping strategies.

The European Commission in Covid-19 vaccine cooperation: leadership vs coronationalism?

During the first weeks of the Covid-19 pandemic, European Union (EU) member states competed over scarce countermeasures. Regarding vaccines, a few member states launched exclusive joint endeavours, yet eventually, the EU centralised vaccine provisioning. The EU's external vaccine diplomacy proceeded almost inversely. After stepping into the breach in global health governance, European leadership faltered and global collaboration progressed more slowly. This article explores Europe's diverging trajectories in the regional and global provisioning of Covid-19 vaccines. Focussing on the European Commission's leadership, we investigate to what extent it promoted regional and international cooperation and with what success. We also explain which factors enabled and constrained Commission leadership. Employing a controlled comparison and process tracing, we find that Commission leadership was more extensive and impactful in regional than in global vaccine provisioning. Member state support was the main enabling condition. Without support, institutional capacity and resources were insufficient for impactful leadership. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Journal of European Public Policy is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)