Alaa from Sudan at UNHCR reception area. ©UNHCR/Pedro Costa Gomes.
By the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Egypt, IFC, ILO, UNHCR, UNICEF
On this World Refugee Day, we want to honor refugees and asylum-seekers around the world and particularly in Egypt, and recognize the efforts made by the Government of Egypt and its partners in support of refugees and asylum-seekers, and vulnerable migrants living in Egypt.
Egypt is a generous host to almost one million vulnerable migrants and more than 283,000 registered refugees and asylum-seekers, many of whom have been in the country for an extended period of time and require support to strengthen their resilience and enhance their integration with the Egyptian community.
Through a unique multi-year partnership supported by the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the International Labour Organization (ILO), the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) have come together to improve the living standards and support the socio-economic inclusion of refugees and asylum-seekers and vulnerable migrants, including young people on the move. The PROSPECTS partnership aims to achieve this objective by enhancing access to services including access to quality education, increased economic opportunities and skills, while mainstreaming related protection services and interventions for refugees, asylum-seekers and vulnerable migrants and Egyptians.
Since the start of the PROSPECTS partnership in 2019, the Kingdom of the Netherlands has generously allocated more than USD 40.8 million to support activities in Egypt. During the last three years, within the framework of PROSPECTS, nearly 103,000 vulnerable Egyptian and refugee children have completed formal education programmes, 73,500 children have benefited from psychosocial support in schools, and more than 100 nurseries have been opened which provide services to Egyptian and non-Egyptians alike. Over 51,600 young people have completed employability skills training courses and 16,600 young entrepreneurs have been supported with trainings to help them establish their own microenterprises. Over 63,300 children and young people have benefited from protection services.
On World Refugee Day 2022, we want to celebrate the courage and strength of all those persons who had to leave their countries for many different reasons, including to escape conflict and persecution. This is an occasion to build empathy and understanding for their plight and the resilience needed to rebuild their lives. Today is also an occasion to recognize the efforts of the Government and people of Egypt in supporting refugees, asylum seekers and vulnerable migrants and helping them to build a more inclusive and cohesive society.
“On the occasion of World Refugee Day, we are delighted to share together the achievements so far by the Prospects programme in Egypt, a unique joint partnership between five organisations, including the Dutch Government. Jointly, we are working to support the Government of Egypt in their efforts to provide refugees, asylum seekers and vulnerable migrants the access to services, protection and care they need. We recognize the significant efforts of the people of Egypt in welcoming refugees and migrants and look forward to continuing our cooperation with the Egyptian Government on the PROSPECTS programme,” said Han-Maurits Schaapveld, Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Egypt.
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