Today, a temporary reception centre for migrants was opened in Bujanovac with accommodation capacity of 250 people. The EU Delegation to Serbia has provided funding for the reconstruction and equipping of the facility to the tune of EUR340 000 – EUR290 000 for the construction works and EUR50 000 for the delivery of equipment. The reconstruction project was implemented by a Belgrade NGO Hausing Centar – Housing Development Centre for Socially Vulnerable Groups – within the project “For a better life“.

Temporary reception centre for migrants is located at the administrative building of the former car battery factory DP SVETLOST in Bujanovac which has been fully reconstructed and equipped to fit the new purpose. Floor area of the facility is 2 000 square metres and is located in the immediate proximity of the Skopje-Belgrade highway passing through the main migrant route through Serbia.

Head of Operations I at the EU Delegation to Serbia Nicolas Bizel said the reconstruction of the facility was a fragment of the support the EU has been providing to Serbia since the outbreak of migrant crisis which has now reached EUR40 million.

“The EU stands ready to provide any assistance Serbia needs to tackle these issues, especially bearing in mind the upcoming winter,” Bizel said.

Minister of Labour, Employment, Veteran and Social Affairs Aleksandar Vulin said Serbian Government was not working to increase the capacity of its reception centres but was making an effort to improve and adapt the existing facilities to current needs of migrants.

“We will work within our means to reduce the number of tents, increase the number of beds and shelters where people can stay for a certain period of time, but I must underline that Serbia is not some place people can enter or leave unsupervised any time they want, and certainly not a place where we disregard the number of entries and exits,” said Minister Vulin.

Apart from Minister Vulin and Mr Bizel, the reception centre was visited by Commissioner for Refugees Vladimir Cucic and President of Bujanovac Municipality Saip Kamberi.

The newly established reception centre will provide safe temporary housing to migrants in line with all international standards. The facility underwent extensive construction works focused on the hygiene and safety of beneficiaries. The facility received new installations of low and high currents, central heating system with boiler room, water supply and sanitation systems, as well as new sanitary blocks. Particular attention was paid to child-friendly and spaces designed for daily activities and education of beneficiaries.

The project is part of a broader EU-funded programme “For a better life” aimed at the improvement of living conditions of forced migrants with the total value of EUR14.2 million.