The social inclusion of immigrants and ethnic minorities is a central issue in many European countries. Governments face challenges in ensuring housing for immigrants, delivering public services, promoting neighbourhood coexistence and addressing residential segregation. The Building Inclusion project, sponsored by the European Commission, enables EU member states to exchange experiences relating to the social inclusion of vulnerable groups. Its special focus is on housing access and housing policy.

The Netherlands has seen many different types of migration since World War II. Each ethnic group has arrived in different cultural, economic and political contexts. Building Inclusion: Housing and Integration of Ethnic Minorities in the Netherlands describes those groups and contexts. It reviews the policy measures taken to respond to the immigrants’ immediate housing needs and to foster their social integration.