MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 07th August, 2020) The number of migrants reaching Greece by sea dropped by 54 percent in 2020 when compared to last year, Eva Savvopoulou, the UN Refugee Agency's (UNHCR) deputy spokesperson in Greece, told Sputnik on Friday.
"Arrivals remained low during the month of July 2020 with 486 people reaching Greece mostly by sea. In August so far there have been 63 sea arrivals reported. Sea arrivals so far in 2020 have a 54 percent decrease compared to the same period last year," Savvopoulou said.
According to the UNHCR, the migrant population in the reception centers on Greek islands dropped this year to 25,500 from over 40,000 in late 2019. At the same time, the centers are still overcrowded, while many refugees are exposed to violence and coronavirus risks.
Savvopoulou mentioned that, according to estimates, nearly 1,000 unaccompanied minors live in reception centers "exposed to high risk".
"In view of this situation, we continue to call on the Greek authorities to improve conditions and further ease overcrowding in the islands' centers, so that residents in these sites are able to apply the basic precautionary measures against COVID-19," the deputy spokesperson said.
Savvopoulou also said that the UNHCR is assisting Greece's COVID-19 response in the centers, including by increasing sanitation capacity, providing hygiene items, installing health units for screening and isolation, and relocating over 1,600 people to safer accommodation.
The deputy spokesperson added that the UNHCR supports Greece's efforts on the relocation of migrants to other countries of the European Union.
"UNHCR welcomes and supports the relocation efforts, which are concrete demonstrations of intra-European solidarity with Greece and the vulnerable asylum seekers involved," Savvopoulou said.
The Relocation project is led by the Greek government and is coordinated and funded by the European Commission. Savvopoulou said that The United Nations Children's Fund and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) also support relocation efforts, and UN agencies actively cooperate with the EU's European Asylum Support Office (EASO) on the issue.
"UNHCR together with EASO and its partners are assisting the Greek authorities in identifying unaccompanied children and children with serious medical conditions for relocation and determining their best interest, in close coordination with the Ministry of Migration and Asylum, while we also support their safe transfer and escorting to the mainland for their eventual departure," Savvopoulou said.
The relocation project aims to move some 3,300 people, including 1,600 unaccompanied minors, from Greece to other EU states. Since April, 158 unaccompanied children have been relocated to other European countries, including Germany, Finland, Belgium, Luxembourg and Portugal. In addition, 173 other vulnerable asylum seekers, namely children with medical conditions together with their families, have been relocated from Greece to Germany. At the same time, the IOM assists migrants who are willing to leave Greece and return to their countries of origin.
