Safety Zone for Unaccompanied Asylum-seeking Children Unveiled in Harmanli

Yoana Vodenicharova

A snapshot of the event (BTA Photo)

Harmanli, Southern Bulgaria,

16.05.2024 15:50

(BTA)

A safety zone for unaccompanied asylum-seeking children was unveiled here on Thursday. It can house 98 persons but this number may double in case of a crisis. This is the third such zone in Bulgaria.

The safety zone, whose construction cost amounts to BGN 1.6 million, was established jointly by the State Agency for Refugees (SAR), UNICEF Bulgaria, and the International Organization for Migration Bulgaria, with the support of Switzerland’s State Secretariat for Migration. The zone has separate bedrooms for girls and boys, and children with disabilities, a canteen and a living room. A specialized staff has also been appointed.

The opening of the safety zone in Harmanli was attended by Vice President Iliana Iotova, caretaker Interior Minister Kalin Stoyanov, and SAR Chair Mariana Tosheva.

Tosheva said that the safety zone is a temporary measure, and the children’s stay in it should be as short as possible. She cited statistics, according to which there has been an unprecedented increase in the number of unaccompanied children in recent years. Bulgaria, along with the Netherlands and Germany, is one of the countries with the highest number of unaccompanied children in 2023, with more than 15,000 registered since 2021.

Another programme between Bulgaria and Switzerland is underway, with a strong focus on migration management, return and reintegration, and tackling human trafficking, said Swiss Ambassador to this country Raymund Furrer. The project in the Harmanli registration and reception center is implemented with financial support from Switzerland.

UNICEF Representative to Bulgaria Christina de Bruin said it is urgent to do more for the children, the most vulnerable group of migrants. According to UNICEF, the number of asylum seekers accommodated in the Harmanli centre currently stands at 302, the majority of them being from Syria. A total of 135 of them are children.

/DS/