Belgrade, 26 April 2021 – The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) donated registration equipment to the Ministry of Interior of the Republic of Serbia today.
The 15 dactiloscopy sets were handed over by UNHCR Represenative in Serbia Francesca Bonelli to the Minister of Interior of the Republic of Serbia Aleksandar Vulin at the Nikola Tesla Airport, Belgrade.
These sets are to to facilitate registration of asylum seekers, support access to asylum procedures for persons in need of international protection both at the air and green borders as well as in the local police stations. This equipment will also facilitate early identification of the protection needs and proper referral to appropriate solutions.
“UNHCR wishes to thank the Government of Serbia and the Ministry of Interior in particular for the longstanding cooperation spanning four and a half decades“ UNHCR Representative in Serbia Bonelli said.
“UNHCR is very pleased to be able to contribute and assist the Ministry in further advancing national asylum system to provide refugee protection to all those who need it through a fair and fast asylum procedure and an opportunity to naturalize for those who would like to stay in Serbia. In order to access protection and asylum procedure a refugee has to be able to access territory and this is why I am happy that today we are at this symbolic place“ said Bonelli, and added “With this donation, UNHCR wishes to strengthen capacities of the Ministry to facilitate registration and access to asylum procedure for all those in need of international protection coming to Serbia’s land or air borders seeking protection and safety.”
“Migrations are not the problem of Serbia only. All the migrants on our territory must be protected and adequately registered“, said Minister Vulin and added „This donation is therefore very important, or with it we can register the people and share this information with the international community and our partners in order for all of us to know who are the persons staying in our territory.
Thanking UNHCR for the donation, the Minister stressed the Agency had never had any political conditions nor asked for political compromise or asked Serbia something it did not need in order to assist and cooperate.
“UNHCR has always been here to help. It recognised and continues to recognise our needs and tries to assist us. Serbia is a steady, reliable and transparent partner, who fulfills the agreements and takes care of the persons staying on its territory“, said Minister Vulin.
UNHCR remains strongly commited to continuing the excellent cooperation with the Ministry of Interior and to supporting provision of protection to refugees, as well as the constructive approach in the management of mixed movements in line with international standards.
This year, the UN Refugee Agency marks 45 years of its presence in the Republic of Serbia. To date, we have supported the Serbian authorities with more than USD 560,000 million.
For more information, contact
Mirjana Milenkovski, [email protected], mob: 063 275 154
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