Highlights: Training activities in 2018 Training delivered, courses developed and training material produced In 2018, Frontex Training Unit delivered 40 courses in different iterations, totalling 135 training sessions held to benefit more than 3,080 participants among border and coast guards, members of the EBCGT pools, Frontex staff, third countries law enforcement representatives, consular staff, averaging a satisfaction rate of 95%. There were thirteen new courses developed in the course of 2018, with 14 new manuals in support of training activities produced. An online English course for border and coast guards was developed and launched in August 2018. Between the launch and the end of the year, 1,050 users enrolled. Interoperability Assessment Programme (IAP) In 2018, Frontex training unit developed the concept of the Interoperability Assessment Programme (IAP) to assess the implementation of the Common Core Curriculum for Border and Coast Guard Training at national level. The IAP focuses on the degree to which participants apply what they learned during the training once they are back on the job, and the effect of the delivered training on the institution they belong to. By allowing monitoring the practical implementation of gained job competencies, the IAP facilitates professional development and the provision of feedback on the relevance of given training resources. These data will contribute to profiling national officers for their deployment in Frontex joint operations. Frontex training quality assurance system and accreditation Both the quality assurance system and the trainers’ certifications contributed to increasing TRU capacity to develop operational competence, streamline and increase the effectiveness of training processes and scale up the capacity to deliver practical applied training to border and coast guards and enable trainers to design and deliver training and assessments to ensure that the operational competence is met. The establishment of the QA system enabled the accreditation for seven Frontex vocational courses for border and coast guards: o European course for national coordination centre (Eurosur) operators o European course for canine trainer (product scent detection) o European course for canine team instructor (product scent detection) o European course for CIRAM risk analysts o European course for fundamental rights specialists o Course design in line with Bologna and Copenhagen principles using the SQF for border guarding o Border and coast guard training delivery methodology − train the trainer. Graduates from these courses will now receive internationally recognised certificates. 41

2.8. Research and innovation Summary Harmonisation In 2018, the following activities and results were achieved:   Support to Member States, eu-LISA, and the European Commission pertinent to the entry/exit system (EES) at the borders was provided. Frontex organised the EES workshop targeting the end-user community; co-organised with eu-LISA a conference on smarter technologies including the EES; contributed as an observer to the EES Advisory Group, EES working group on land and sea borders, smart borders committee and working group on practical handbook.   In support of the harmonisation of the EU border control capacities with a view to developing best practices and standards, a working group on technology and standards was launched, and baseline technical requirements for maritime equipment were elaborated; a methodology for testing and assessing the performance of document inspection systems was developed and tested in real environment.   Development of capabilities and practices in the field of Automated Border Control (ABC) and biometric systems for border control. Risk management and mitigation workshop for ABC and biometric systems organised; risk management and mitigation framework for ABC and biometrics systems developed; ABC implementation survey conducted and report published; trainer’s manuals on ABC systems revised; technical expert meeting on latest operational performance data on ABC systems organised.    In support of European and international standardisation activities in the area of border security, contributions were provided to the European Commission (EC) technical sub-group of the Article 6 Committee, European Committee for Standardisation (CEN/CENELEC), International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), International Organisation for Standards (ISO), National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST), and other fora.   Technical support provided to Frontex business units − namely CED, RAU and TRU − on biometric technology and its vulnerabilities for border control, in particular, pertinent to morphing and document fraud. Development and technical assistance In 2018, the work focused on providing technical support and expertise to a variety of stakeholders:    Guidelines on advance information, aiming at supporting Member States with the development of traveller analysis capacities, were finalised.    Technical expertise was regularly provided to the European Commission in relation to the feasibility study for a centralised routing mechanism and interactive API.    Technical support was provided to Member States in order to better plan their border management operations, with an operational research model developed by Frontex for simulation.    Technical support was provided to Western Balkan countries under the Instrument for Pre-Accession (IPA II). Technology assessment The most relevant achievements were:    Technology assessment of the effectiveness of the border control systems and technologies to support the future acquisition of border management technologies within the EU;    Enhanced capacity of Member States to perform land, sea and aerial border surveillance thus contributing to improved border security;    Enhanced operational capacity at EU level through the identification of new communication solutions;    Increased capacity of the border management community to share sensor data/information at local level;    Enhanced awareness of the stakeholders of Frontex on the different technologies and systems for border control through the dissemination of the results of the assessments performed;    Increased operational border control capacities at EU level. In line with the abovementioned, the main activities implemented were as follows: 42

Identification of emerging technologies and/or innovative technical solutions for border control: - biometrics on the move, trial preparation; - working group meeting on low flying objects; - workshop and demonstration on mobile devices for border checks. Testing, trials and demonstrations of technologies/solutions for border control: - trial of Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (MALE RPAS) for long endurance Maritime Aerial Surveillance; - maritime analysis tools pilot trial. Cooperation activities: - testing and evaluation of a new Copernicus service (wake detection); - organisation of a workshop with the industry on forecasting changes in the migration flows using open sources; - participation in Frontex meetings with the industry organised under the innovation project; - participation in external meetings and conferences addressing technology issues relevant for border control and coast guard functions; - technical support to other partners such as the European Commission, EU agencies, MSs and TCs. Innovation The work in this area focused on:     strengthening, stimulating and nurturing the dialog between the industry/academia and the border guard community in order to: a) significantly increase border guards’ knowledge on border security research and innovation and the latest border control technologies available; b) provide input to industry/academia regarding current research so that its results are useful for the potential end users; c) make industry/academia aware of the real needs of the border guard community as a basis for future research.     preparations for implementing the provisions referring to the EU framework programme for research and innovation mentioned in the art. 37 of Frontex regulation. In this context, the following main activities were implemented:     evaluation of the offers received by the European Commission in the framework of Horizon 2020, the Work Programme 2018 (Secure societies − Protecting freedom and security of Europe and its citizens); involvement in EU-funded border security related projects’ reviews, workshops, tests/demonstrations;     discussions with the EC related to modalities for implementing the provisions referring to the EU framework programme for research and innovation mentioned in the art. 37 of Frontex regulation;     study on joint cross-border procurement;     the bi-annual meetings with the industry and the workshops on EU-funded border security research projects and on border security research and innovative solutions/technologies. 43

Highlights: Research and innovation in 2018 Performance assessment methodology for document inspection systems (DIS) The activity marked the first attempt ever to develop a methodology applicable to different operational environments. The methodology has been tested during a series of dedicated ‘test exercises’ that took place at five different border crossing points across Europe. The test exercises helped underpin the importance of the methodology, facilitating the assessment of document inspection systems (DIS) performance and allowing for comparison between different document inspections systems in operational use. The test exercises focused primarily on the assessment of DIS for manual control and the automated border control (ABC) systems where applicable. The methodology constitutes a set of procedures developed to measure DIS’s overall and detailed performance. It has proven to be accurate as it revealed several shortcomings and/or weaknesses of tested DIS in operation, and flexible due to its applicability to different border crossing points and ability to capture performance of DIS in both manual and automated checks. The methodology and the test results will be published in a report that will be presented and critically discussed with the Member States , and the results will also be used to complement current and future standardisation efforts in this area, e.g. in support of the work undertaken by the technical subgroup of the Article 6 Committee, ISO/CEN, and ICAO, to name a few, feeding into the development of harmonised technical and operational requirements for DIS as well as international standardisation activities related to border security. Standards for technical equipment The activity concerning the development of minimum technical and operational requirements for maritime equipment is in line with the Agency’s mandate to ensure the compatibility and interoperability of the equipment listed in the technical equipment pool by defining technical standards to be met by the Member States contributing to Frontex joint operations. Research and Innovation Unit was assigned the task to develop minimum technical and operational requirements for technical equipment in support of Frontex operations. After an extensive mapping exercise of different equipment within the technical equipment pool, very fragmented requirements at different levels were found. In order to address this issue and starting with maritime equipment in 2018, a working group comprising of MSs and Frontex experts was created, with the objective to elaborate on harmonised and compatible maritime equipment. The working group has successfully elaborated the minimum technical and operational requirements that will support Frontex in purchasing its own equipment, support the EC in their decision-making when funding the purchase of technical equipment by MSs financed through the Internal Security Fund and also when MSs make available to Frontex technical equipment that should meet the same minimum requirements thus making the selection procedure objective and transparent. Likewise, the minimum technical and operational requirements will also support the development of the new version of OPERA by ensuring the compatibility and interoperability of the items in the technical equipment pool. Maritime surveillance capabilities Frontex conducted a pilot project to explore Medium Altitude Remotely-Piloted Aircraft Systems (MALE RPAS) in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea. The project was conducted with the support of the Hellenic Authorities during the last quarter of 2018. The objective of this particular pilot project was to enable Frontex and the European Union border control authorities to test, assess, and evaluate MALE RPAS capability to deliver long-endurance maritime border surveillance operations supporting coast guard functions. To materialise this pilot activity, Frontex conducted an open procurement out of which a public contract (OP/800/2017/JL) was signed with a consortium (IAI − Israel and AIRBUS DS) to provide a service consisting of 600 surveillance flying hours, delivered over a period of 120 calendar days in 2018. The execution was contracted as a ‘turn- key’ service, meaning that Frontex paid the provider for surveillance flight hours delivered, including in the contract price all the operational and logistics tasks related to the RPAS deployment and use. The payload on board the RPAS (radar, AIS, and camera) fulfilled the coastguard function missions assigned as efficiently as any other surveillance asset deployed in the Joint Operation Poseidon, with the added advantage of providing an extended endurance, availability, and reliability. The flight integration scheme set-up by the Greek authorities enabled the RPAS to fly in a non-segregated airspace, and to prove its capability to deliver long endurance maritime border surveillance in a regular, reliable, and cost-efficient way. 44

2.9. Situation monitoring Summary In 2018, Frontex launched 24/7 duty service allowing for a round-the-clock monitoring of the situation at the borders and in the pre-frontier areas. Since 1 October, a team of 13 Senior Duty Officers has been dedicated to supporting this task. Regular and ad hoc reports provided stakeholders with accurate and close to real-time situational picture of the EU’s border and pre-frontier areas, improving situational awareness and increasing reaction capability. In 2018, 4,023 situation monitoring reports produced enhanced situational picture at the borders (14% decrease compared to 2017), 41,039 incidents were detected (4% decrease), reported, and validated in JORA (including 124 serious incidents), 7,848 JORA users were provided with an access to the system (62% increase), 131 requests for information on operational data were processed by the Senior Duty Officers team, and 6,891 documents were uploaded to FOSS (4% decrease). Eurosur/Copernicus Fusion Services (EFS) In 2018, a decision was made to create the Information Fusion Centre in order to consolidate the capacities of Frontex Situation Centre Eurosur Fusion Services Sector and Risk Analysis Unit Analytics Sector in addressing growing internal and external demand for the Eurosur/Copernicus Fusion Services. This demand was reflected in 2018 in the stakeholders’ rising interest in satellite data, vessel tracking information, and multipurpose aerial surveillance. 2018 marked also an enhanced cooperation with EFS stakeholders − EMSA, EFCA and EU SatCen, and an enhanced Copernicus Programme implementation. The EFS continued to support Member States and other partners with situation monitoring and information exchange capabilities. In 2018, the EFS contribution included 937 optical satellite images (16% increase), 2,313 vessel detection satellite images (87% increase), 34 reports on tracked vessels of interest (72% decrease), 37 vessels of interest tracked in total (38% decrease), and 491 activated vessel anomaly searches (44% increase). Eurosur/Copernicus Fusion Services (EFS) real-time surveillance Multipurpose Aerial Surveillance (MAS) activities were extended to new geographical areas, and in 2018 covered the Central Mediterranean, the Western Balkans, the Aegean Sea, the Black Sea, and the Atlantic Ocean. For the first time in the Agency’s history, a Remotely Piloted Aircraft was used to support its activities during Multipurpose Aerial Surveillance (MAS) activities in the south of Portugal. This effort translated to 4,924 migrants being detected in the Central Mediterranean and reported to the competent national authorities for follow-up actions (search and rescue and law enforcement cases) and 635 migrants being spotted inland of the Western Balkans and reported to the competent national authority (cross-border crime cases). Throughout the year MAS, as one of the Eurosur/Copernicus Fusion Services, was provided to the stakeholders in combination with other EFS services. In 2018, FSC launched for the first time real-time surveillance activities over land areas. The Multipurpose Aerial Surveillance service has been activated over the pre-frontier area of the Croatian section of the EU’s external border. The MAS-Western-Balkans mission started on 18 July 2018 in cooperation with the Croatian Ministry of Interior. MAS performed flights over the pre-frontier areas from the Zadar Airport. Cooperation with the Croatian authorities included an involvement of Croatian experts in the European Monitoring Team (EMT) at Frontex, coordinating the MAS mission, as well as continuous communication between the EMT and the authorities, ensuring appropriate follow-up activities are performed following MAS sightings. From 18 July 2018 until the end of the year, 635 irregular migrants were sighted by the MAS aircraft attempting to cross the EU external border from Bosnia and Herzegovina into Croatia. MAS reported 46 sightings, all of which were notified to relevant authorities. The single biggest detection took place on 22 August, when MAS aircraft sighted a group of 89 irregular migrants attempting to cross the border towards Croatia. The Croatian authorities were swiftly notified of the detection and an operational response on the ground followed. The real-time surveillance on land has not only contributed to the detection of irregular migration, but has also triggered law enforcement activities. On 27 September, MAS aircraft sighted a group of migrants boarding a van in the proximity of the border. The aircraft closely monitored the van and its movements, and reported the incident to the authorities. Thanks to MAS intelligence, the van was intercepted on a highway, and two facilitators, together with the migrants, were apprehended. Regarding the capacity development dimension, Frontex Aerial Surveillance Services (FASS) proved to be of high added value to the Multipurpose Aerial Surveillance activities (MAS) conducted under the lead of Frontex Situation Centre. During 2018, more than 1,800 flight hours were implemented to support MAS activities, out of which 169 hours for specific purposes of EFCA. 45

2.10.               International and European cooperation Summary Cooperation with third countries In line with the International Cooperation Strategy 2018−2020, Frontex has further increased its international engagement with countries of origin and transit for illegal immigration along the key migratory routes to the EU. In 2018, particular efforts were dedicated to strengthening the dialogue with North and West African countries, including official visits of the Executive Management to Egypt, Senegal and Ghana. Frontex started the implementation of a new EU-funded project ‘EU4BorderSecurity’ addressing countries in the Southern Neighbourhood of the EU and continued the implementation of another project aiming to strengthen the Africa-Frontex Intelligence Community (AFIC; see also section 2.5.1). Moreover, Frontex supported the International Training Centre at the Egyptian Police Academy (ITEPA), an EU-funded project of Italy and Egypt that entails the delivery of a series of training courses to border police officers from 22 African countries in Cairo. The Agency also started negotiations on working arrangement with The Gambia and further advanced on negotiations with the authorities of Senegal, Niger and Guinea. The Agency also worked closely with civilian CSDP missions (e.g. EUBAM Libya, EUCAP Sahel Mali/Niger), supporting their work with expertise and advice and relying on their cooperation frameworks for engagement with the third-country authorities. For example, since 2017, Frontex experts have been regularly supporting EUBAM Libya in Tunis − first through short-term deployments. In cooperation with Italy and EUBAM Libya, the Agency developed a pilot training module for the General Administration of Coastal Security (GACS) of Libya. The trainings will be carried out in 2019. Turkey and the Western Balkans region continued to be important priorities across various areas of the Agency’s work. The Agency continued to support Western Balkan authorities through the multiannual capacity building project for the ‘Regional support to protection-sensitive migration management in the Western Balkans and Turkey’. Cooperation with the Eastern Partnership (EaP) countries continued through the EaP Integrated Border Management Capacity Building Project and some bilateral initiatives. A cooperation plan was concluded between Frontex and the General Inspectorate of Border Police of Moldova for the years 2018−2020. Highlights: International and European Cooperation in 2018 Eastern Partnership Integrated Border Management (EaP/IBM) Capacity Building Project At the end of 2018, Frontex successfully closed the Eastern Partnership Integrated Border Management Capacity Building Project. Under the umbrella of the EaP/IBM Flagship Initiative, the project aimed at strengthening the capacities of the EaP countries to apply IBM in line with the European best practices. With the overall budget of EUR 4.5 million over a period of four years (2014 − 2018), the project represented an integral part of the overall EU support to the countries of the region − Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine. The project was the first technical assistance initiative implemented by Frontex as a leading agency in close co- operation with the World Customs Organisation (WCO), the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), and the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD). This initiative supported the establishment of a training system on IBM in the six beneficiary countries and served as a regional platform of exchange on IBM best practices and lessons learned. At the same time, it facilitated interagency cooperation between border guards and customs services in the EaP region. More than 120 activities and 83 training sessions took place within the framework of the project. As a result, 1,200 border and customs officials were trained on topics such as document checks, interview techniques, screening and identification of nationalities, combatting trafficking in human beings and fundamental rights. 46

Start of a new project in the Southern Neighbourhood - EU4BorderSecurity In December 2018, Frontex started a three-year capacity building project ‘EU4BorderSecurity’. Financed by the European Neighbourhood Instrument, the project seeks to enhance border security in the Southern Mediterranean, North Africa and the Levant, by fostering bilateral and regional cooperation, while facilitating bona fide travel. It will contribute to building trust, understanding, structured partnerships, and exchange of experiences and practices in the IBM domain. The project will familiarise the participating countries with the mandate and work of Frontex and enhance their capacity to conduct risk analysis, situation monitoring and operational border and coast guard operations. This way it will aim to contribute to the fight against security threats, particularly organised crime and terrorism in the region. Operational and country specific capacity building support will be based on the priorities identified by the partner countries. The EU4BorderSecurity project will proactively seek to identify and exploit synergies by complementing and enriching already ongoing activities in the border management/security domain. The action plan will take into account specific idiosyncrasies of each country’s border management context and needs, and will promote increased ownership by the partners. Furthermore, the project will combine development of bilateral relations with Frontex and will deliver capacity building support to national border management authorities. It will pursue close cooperation with international actors and EU Member States active in the region. EU4Border Security is multidimensional and built upon two axes:     horizontal and cross-cutting dimension with the objective to build trust and understanding through a dedicated platform for sharing knowledge and experiences;     capacity-building dimension focusing on IBM component areas through sub-regional activities, tailor-made national training programs and small-scale technical assistance actions. Cooperation with EU partners and international organisations In 2018, Frontex continued strengthening its cooperation with both EU and international partners by, among others, implementing and revising various cooperation plans and working arrangements. The Agency also supported the EU policy makers and legislators on numerous cases by providing technical and operational advice within its area of expertise. In the area of freedom, security and justice, Frontex continued its close cooperation with its peer agencies, in particular Europol, EASO, eu-LISA, CEPOL and Eurojust, within the framework of the Justice and Home Affairs (JHA) Agencies Network as well as through bilateral partnerships. Contacts with EU entities outside of the JHA remit, such as EASA or EDA, were also taking place, reflecting Frontex’s broad, multidisciplinary approach to security. Frontex activities reflected the growing need for cooperation between civil and military actors reinforcing and bridging the internal and the external security of the EU. In this regard, Frontex enhanced its cooperation with the CSDP EUNAVFOR Med Operation Sophia, including deployment of its officers to the Operation’s Crime Information Cell. It enhanced fruitful cooperation with the European Defence Agency (EDA). The first joint training project between Frontex and EDA under the auspices of the Austrian Presidency was conducted. In the area of coast guard functions, the cooperation through the tripartite working arrangement between Frontex, EMSA and EFCA allowed for a greater support to the activities of the national authorities in the maritime domain. Frontex became a regular, active participant in the Customs Cooperation Working Party (CCWP) as well as a strategic counterpart in the customs environment, in particular in the relationship with the Customs Eastern and South-Eastern Land Border Expert Team (CELBET). This reflects the increasing need to deepen structural cooperation between customs and law-enforcement actors, as they operate in the same environment and tackle the same threats. In 2018, Frontex also explored possibilities on how to further enhance its cooperation and develop strategic partnership with international organisations such as INTERPOL, WCO, OSCE and UNHCR. Cooperation covers fields such as migration, border management and fighting cross-border crime. Frontex sought to build upon the existing working arrangements and to explore the possibilities of developing new ones. A new ICT platform for facilitating the reporting mechanism serving coordination of Member States’ activities in third countries has been developed and delivered; it will contribute to the cooperation with Member States and Schengen associated countries. 47

Highlights: EU partners and international organisations Joint Europol-Frontex Management Board meeting In October 2018, Frontex and Europol held a joint Management Board in the Hague. It was the first meeting of this kind. It offered a unique opportunity for Frontex to present the agency's tools and capabilities to its partners in Europol and Member States. Frontex informed participants about its presence on the ground, as well as providing a comprehensive picture of the situation at the external borders. The meeting was also a good occasion to discuss both agencies' work in many fields, such as information exchange, risk analysis, joint presence in hotspots and preparations for the implementation of ETIAS. The Management Board discussion was facilitated by concrete examples of operations conducted jointly by the two agencies and Member States. The Executive Directors of both agencies took the opportunity to sign a statement of principles for collaboration between Europol and Frontex. They will be guiding the daily cooperation between the agencies, strengthening the synergies and mutual operational support between the two agencies. They confirm and strengthen the special partnership between Europol and Frontex and their joint commitment to tackle key security challenges. The joint Frontex-Europol Management Boards meeting was a remarkable event, showing the strengthening partnership and increasing cooperation of the two agencies. The meeting offered a great opportunity to present the work the agencies do together and to discuss future cooperation. The Member States offered their feedback and ideas on how to shape joint work against key security challenges. The meeting confirmed that Frontex is a well- established security actor and a valuable partner to police community. This was particularly important in light of the growing need for enhancing cooperation between the EU security actors. Regarding the capacity development dimension, in the context of the Frontex-led IPA II Regional Programme, Frontex Training Unit supported the development of border management capacities in the Western Balkan countries by delivering train the trainers and specialised courses in the areas of fundamental rights and return. In addition to that, a study tour was organised engaging representatives from the border and coast guards academies of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the former Yugoslavia Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) and Serbia. The study tour took participants to the German Federal Police Academy in Lűbeck and to Frontex’s Headquarters. The aim was to familiarise participants with the training programmes, the organisation of basic and advanced courses, the relevant structures and entities in charge and the instruments available to benefit from international cooperation and European pre-accession assistance. In the context of interagency cooperation and synergy, TRU supported: -   EASO in the development of the Sectoral Qualification Framework for asylum officials and reception; -   The European Security and Defence College in the development of Sectoral Qualifications Framework for military officers; -   EFCA in the feasibility assessment on the development of a potential Sectoral Qualifications Framework for fisheries control; -   JHA Agencies training network on developing a common approach for quality assurance of law enforcement training; -   CEPOL on developing a sound approach to align the training to the European qualification framework. Liaison officers to Member States and third countries In 2018, Frontex continued to develop and maintain networks of Frontex Liaison Officers (FLOs) in Member States and third countries. The Agency recruited and trained 11 FLOs to be deployed in Member States and Schengen associated countries, most of them with a regional mandate covering up to four MS/SAC. By the end of 2018, four FLOs were effectively deployed in Member States hosting the main seat. Frontex also continued to develop its FLO network in third countries. The presence of FLOs in Turkey, Niger and the Western Balkans (main seat in Serbia) are already showing first results in closer engagement with the authorities of third countries. The FLOs are collocated to the respective EU Delegations in third countries and closely cooperate with the European Migration Liaison Officers (EMLOs), Immigration Liaison Officers (ILOs) of the EU Member States and other EU actors as CSDP missions. 48

Further deployments are planned in the priority regions indicated by the Management Board in 2018, namely in Northern and Western Africa, Horn of Africa, the Silk Route region, and the Western Balkans. In this light, and following the decision of the Management Board, the Agency started to work on the deployment of a FLO in Senegal, who is expected to be recruited and deployed in 2019. In order to support the FLO networks, the Agency established a dedicated back-office within the International and European Cooperation Division. The back-office provides support, monitors and guides the FLOs, and facilitates the interaction between FLOs and the Frontex’s Headquarters. It also analyses and processes the outcomes of the FLO activities (e.g. regular reports), and ensures awareness and follow-up by various Frontex business entities. Highlights: Frontex Liaison Officers Networks in 2018 Frontex Liaison Officers to EU Member States In 2018, Frontex started the deployment of FLOs to 30 EU Member States and Schengen associated countries − a new task entrusted to the Agency in the EBCG Regulation. The role of the FLOs is to foster cooperation and dialogue between Frontex and national authorities responsible for border management and return, including coast guards to the extent that they carry out border control tasks. They are also meant to play an important role in the context of the Frontex’s vulnerability assessment activities. Following the decision of the Frontex Management Board, 11 FLOs are deployed to the following country clusters: 1.   Austria, Germany, Liechtenstein, Switzerland − the main seat in Germany 2.   Belgium, Iceland, Luxembourg, The Netherlands – the main seat in Belgium 3.   Bulgaria 4.   Croatia, Slovenia, Hungary, Romania – the main seat in Hungary 5.   Cyprus, Greece – the main seat in Greece 6.   Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia – the main seat in Slovakia 7.   Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden – the main seat in Sweden 8.   Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania – the main seat in Latvia 9.   France 10.  Italy, Malta – the main seat in Italy 11.  Portugal, Spain – the main seat in Spain In the course of the year, all 11 FLOs were recruited and started their pre-deployment phase in Frontex’s Headquarters in Warsaw. Each FLO undergoes on average a 3-month pre-deployment training. 49

2.11.              Media and Public relations Summary To promote the achievements of the Agency and in line with its commitment to openness and transparency, Media and Public Relations (MPR) continued to facilitate access of journalists to Frontex’s operations. In 2018, some 50 journalists visited operational areas in Spain, Italy, and Greece. Furthermore, almost 30 of them were embedded on vessels, helicopters or aircrafts during patrolling activities and search and rescue operations. The journalists represented national and international media outlets including BBC, CBS, El Pais, El Mundo, AFP, New York Times London, Bavarian TV/ARD, YLE, France 3, NHK, Japan Broadcasting Corporation, Le Figaro, ZDF, The Independent, France 5, and Discovery Channel. Furthermore, Frontex also organized six press conferences and briefings held by the Executive director for journalists. These took place in Madrid, Brussels, Dakar, Athens, Sopot and Algeciras and gathered about 120 journalists. In 2018, Media and Public Relations Office continued to carry out a wide range of outreach activities. In its headquarters in Warsaw, Frontex hosted over 560 guests who included students, researchers, police academy cadets and military officers. Our spokespersons briefed them on Frontex’s activities, answered their questions and provided relevant printed materials. Each month, Frontex receives numerous requests for information and access to its operations from the general public. We contributed to a wider academic discussion about migration by providing information about Frontex and the role of European Institutions in general to Master and PhD students and researches from European academic institutions and beyond. Additionally, our spokespersons were invited to present at a number of different venues including universities, embassies, and various government departments, speaking to over 150 people in total. In 2018, we published 39 press releases on migratory flows, new operations and events organized in the headquarters and in operational areas. The press releases were often accompanied by short videos published on Frontex’s social media channels. MPR supported he expansion of the Vega Children concept, an initiative to better identify and refer children at risk on the move across the external borders through the publication and dissemination of a thematic handbook in 32 languages. MPR also supported different teams and divisions by organizing in-house and external training sessions including editorial training for myFX content creators, media training and presentation workshops. Last year, Frontex continued to expand its presence on social media launching Frontex’s Facebook page. In the first four months we published 66 Facebook posts, gained 3,850 followers and reached an average of 10,000 people with Frontex’s video content. In 2018, the number of followers of Frontex on Twitter grew to 21,000, and the number of tweets published reached 277. We also put together Frontex social media guidelines, accompanied by an animated video, for all Frontex staff and the deployed officers. Last year, the total number of followers of Frontex LinkedIn page launched the previous year increased by close to 100%in comparison to 2017 (from 6118 in 2017 to 12 202 in 2018) and total number of organic impressions (the number of times each update is shown to LinkedIn members) increased by 322% in comparison to 2017 (from 429 878 in 2017 to 1 388 471 in 2018). In 2018, MPR produced eight short videos about key Frontex’s activities as well as over one hundred reports, training manuals and brochures. The movies were one of the most viewed content on Frontex’s website and on social media channels in 2018. MPR also produced eight feature stories for the website and created 24 profiles of officers deployed in Frontex’s operations that were shared on our social media platforms. MPR was involved in the EU Protects project coordinated by the European Commission promoting European cooperation. The communication materials produced focused on security and migration. The videos and web stories about Frontex will be published in the first quarter of 2019. To make the information about the Agency accessible to all EU citizens, in November 2018 Frontex launched a multilingual version of its website in all 24 official languages of the EU. Moreover, all new videos were also subtitled in 24 languages. Frontex’s growing staff was the focus of internal communication team which launched several new initiatives aimed at staff integration. These included monthly birthday breakfast meetings with the Executive Director, family day and Frontex happy hour. We also organised an internal day which focused on sports activities and a Christmas party for all staff and their spouses or partners. 50