News Item

Fundamental Rights Officers from EU Agencies meet at FRA

On 20 June, FRA hosted a meeting of fundamental rights officers from the EU Agency for Asylum (EUAA), Frontex, and Europol. They are an internal fundamental rights protection mechanism that EU agencies with operational activities which impact on people’s rights have set up as a safeguard to protect and promote the respect for fundamental rights in their activities.

The first fundamental rights officer was set up in Frontex. Since then, three other EU agencies, namely the EUAA, Europol and the Authority for Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AMLA) have followed. 

They work independently within their respective agencies with the task to monitor fundamental rights compliance of the agencies’ activities. FRA regularly meets them to promote consistency and synergies in their work. 

The meeting on 20 June discussed issues relating to their daily work, including field visits, methodologies for fundamental rights impact assessments, the use of artificial intelligence and fundamental rights. 

Three officers took part in the meeting. AMLA has not yet appointed its fundamental rights officer. 

FRA considers fundamental rights officers to be an important internal fundamental rights protection mechanism, as described for Frontex in its 2023 publication The European Border and Coast Guard and fundamental rights, which the EU legislator should consider also for other EU agencies that operationally support Member States.