Protest by two hundred migrants without the possibility of requesting asylum before the Ombudsman, on March 5 in Madrid. Álvaro García
The Ministry of Inclusion, Migration and Social Security has approved an extraordinary amount of 49.3 million euros to alleviate the collapse of the reception system for asylum seekers and refugees. The prolongation of the war in Ukraine and the arrival of tens of thousands of people in cayuco to the Canary Islands have exceeded all reception forecasts, to the point that in March the resources to cover all of 2024 had already been exhausted. Migrations assumes resolution, published in the BOE this Thursday, that the measure was “essential and non-extendable” because the network is at its limit. With some 37,000 asylum seekers welcomed, it has been working at 99% of capacity for months. This “extraordinarily high” occupancy leaves no room for reaction to any contingency and keeps hundreds of people waiting to access the system.
The financial injection, which is added to the 666 million euros already budgeted, aims to cover 6,426 new places per month, from April to October. It is a shot of oxygen, but nothing indicates that the measure will resolve the structural deficiencies of the Spanish asylum system. “It will alleviate the waiting list and the most vulnerable people (women, families and the sick) will be able to be accommodated more quickly,” ministry sources explain.
Neither the reception network, dependent on Migration, nor the resources allocated to the registration and study of applications, which depend on the Ministry of the Interior, are able to respond to the demand. For five years now, Spain has been setting records for requests for international protection and is among the three EU countries with the most applicants, with Venezuelans, Colombians and Central Americans leading the way. In 2023 the last record was broken, with more than 163,000 people arriving in Spain in search of refuge, and this despite the difficulties that those interested have in accessing a prior appointment to formalize their request.
Of all those who request asylum, only a minority requests a place in the reception system, because it is limited to people without resources, but, with these numbers, the pressure is permanent and the resources used are insufficient. The problem not only stems from the lack of places, but also from the fact that the Asylum Office of the Ministry of the Interior also works at its limit and takes more than two years to resolve the files instead of the six months established by the European directive. Without these resolutions, there is no rotation in the reception places, which end up occupied by a majority whose protection will ultimately not be recognized.
The precariousness of the reception system has been making headlines since 2019, when, in the middle of winter, dozens of families seeking asylum had to sleep on the streets due to lack of beds. In October 2020, the then Minister of Migration, José Luis Escrivá, acknowledged that he was keeping 8,000 asylum seekers waiting for a place that the system was not capable of offering. And, in 2022, the war in Ukraine broke out, forcing five million people to move throughout the EU. Spain was the fifth community country that registered the most Ukrainian refugees, granting temporary protection to some 200,000 people. This mass exodus since the Russian invasion forced the reception network to be stretched with up to 24,000 new places, especially in hotels.
Many of these Ukrainian refugees have already left the system, but this group continues to account for 38% of all those welcomed by the network. The percentage rises to 89% in the so-called autonomy phase, the last, when applicants live autonomously in apartments thanks to financial aid. The difficulties of socio-labor integration, given that the majority profile of Ukrainians is women with children, have contributed to the fact that these positions are not released at the rate that the ministry would need.
The other factor that has strained the network has been irregular arrivals by sea, especially to the Canary Islands. Unlike other times, the majority profile of those disembarking is not Moroccan, a profile that is less common among asylum seekers. “Many of these people are fleeing political instability in West African countries and are seeking international protection,” the resolution states, referring to citizens of Mali and Senegal, in particular.
The Spanish reception system for asylum seekers and refugees consists of three phases, which take months to the limit. In the first stage, the profile of the interested party and their needs are studied while their next destination is decided. The second phase is considered reception, which usually takes place in centers or hostels, and in it they will be prepared to be self-employed, with training, job search and housing. In the last stage, which is only accessible to people who are already considered refugees, rental assistance is offered so that they can live independently. The itinerary lasts 18 months, extendable up to 24, in cases of special vulnerability. The cost of the first two phases is 56.75 euros per place per day, while the cost of the last one falls to 32 euros per day.
Spanish is, furthermore, a model that is supported by NGOs and that hardly has public places. That was an issue that Escrivá wanted to address with the construction or opening of 17 new state centers that would supplement the network with 5,700 places. The plan, financed with the European recovery funds approved after the pandemic, is still being implemented and has been met with the rejection of several PP town councils to install these spaces in their territory.
Markus González, professor of Constitutional Law at the University of Barcelona and former director general of Immigration, sees economic reinforcement as a structural problem. “We must reflect more deeply on the reception model we have. We must look for a permanent model, which does not depend on a war or a peak in arrivals, but is reinforced structurally with the participation of all administrations with powers in the field of integration.
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