Vasco Malta

Vasco Malta is an international lawyer and senior policy leader with two decades of experience at the intersection of law, human rights, and migration governance. He holds a Law degree and an LL.M. in European Law in a Global Context from the Católica School of Law and completed the program Strategic Thinking and Management at Harvard Business Publishing School. Since 2005, Malta has combined legal expertise with high-level government and international service. He began his career at the Portuguese High Commission for Migration and later served as Legal Officer for the Commission for Equality and Against Racial Discrimination. Appointed by the Portuguese Government as National Liaison Officer to the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights, he went on to work at the Agency in Vienna, Austria (2014–2018), where he coordinated European networks on hate crime, justice cooperation, and parliamentary relations. From 2019, he directed International Relations and Migration Policy at the High Commission for Migration and served as Assistant to the Minister of Internal Affairs, advising on migration, refugees, human trafficking, and domestic violence. In 2020, following a competitive international selection process, he was appointed Head of Mission of the International Organization for Migration (IOM)—the United Nations Migration Agency—in Portugal. Malta is a frequent speaker at international conferences and a recognized voice on global migration, human rights, and equality.