The mission of the Task Force Migration Management (TFMM) is to improve conditions and end overcrowding in migrant reception centres on the Greek islands and to enhance migration and asylum processes in Greece.
Background
- 2020September 8 and 9
A number of fires destroy the Moria reception camp on Lesvos. 12,362 children, women and men were left without shelter. The Commission grants €750,000 in emergency assistance.
- 2020September 23
The Commission announces the creation of a dedicated Task Force to improve the situation on the island.
- 2020December 3
The Commission, Greek authorities and EU agencies agree on a detailed plan to establish a new, up-to-standard reception centre on Lesvos.
Key objectives of the Task Force Migration Management
- Construction of a new reception centre on the island of Lesvos of European standard, a durable structure and with access to healthcare and adequate sanitation, taking into account the needs of women, children and families.
- Ending overcrowding in reception centres on the islands by transferring vulnerable people to the mainland, and relocating unaccompanied children and families with children to other EU countries.
- Ensuring fast, effective procedures to decide swiftly on status, have shorter stays, bring clarity and certainty to applicants and ensure that they are well linked up, making it smoother to go from asylum to either return or integration.
- Increased voluntary returns of migrants to their country of origin, by making better use of the existing project for assisted voluntary return.
- Improved safety and security for migrants and asylum seekers fully supported by Frontex and Europol.
- Full winterisation and appropriate sanitary and health conditions at the temporary site on Lesvos, until the new reception centre on Lesvos is built.
The Task Force was created as part of the joint pilot project on Lesvos, agreed between the Greek authorities and the European Commission.
Its primary goal is to: significantly increase the effectiveness of migration management, the reception and living conditions for migrants on Lesvos by stepping up Commission and EU Agencies support. The Task Force will allow the European Commission to play its dedicated supporting role to the fullest.
The Task Force acts as a “resource instigator”.
It works in close collaboration with the Greek authorities to coordinate the efforts and support for migration management at a key part of the EU’s external border.
It actively engages with the EU Agencies joined in the pilot project and with relevant stakeholders, local authorities, international organisations, non-governmental organisations, and with EU Member States and Schengen countries to find the right support for each migration management challenge in Greece.
As of 19 October 2022, there are currently 3 787 migrants present in reception centres on the Eastern Aegean Islands.
No. The European Commission is supporting the Greek authorities to set up new multi-purpose reception and identification centres on five other Greek islands. Construction of the new centres has already finished on Samos, Kos and Leros, while preparation is in full swing for the new centres on Lesvos and Chios.
To learn more about the construction, visit the webpage: Construction of new reception centres.
No. The facilities will be open reception centres with control of entry and exit for the residents and necessary limitations to ensure full safety and security for all groups of residents, the personnel, and the local population. The residents will be able to come and go at will.
The European Commission has awarded the necessary funding under the EU’s Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund for the construction of the new centres.
In November 2020, the Commission awarded €121 million for the construction of reception centres on the islands of Samos, Kos and Leros. On 29 March, the Commission awarded a further grant of €155 million to the Greek authorities to build new reception centres on the Greek islands of Lesvos and Chios.
To get a full picture on the financing, visit the webpage:
Once built, the new multi-purpose reception centres will enter into operation providing the necessary infrastructure to ensure a better managed migration on the islands.
The current temporary reception structure on Lesvos will be closed down and the residents will move to the new centre, where they can benefit from improved living conditions.
The new centres are a part of the overall project to improve migration management on the islands. They will allow the joint pilot to run in full force, designed to have the different procedures of arrival, registration and asylum run fast and effective within the centre premises. In parallel, we continue to support the smooth integration of different processes with our EU agencies.
Documents
- Memorandum of Understanding between the European Commission, Greek authorities and EU agencies on a joint pilot for the establishment of a new reception and identification centre in Lesvos