The European Union has adopted on Friday an additional EUR 30 million package to help tackle the impact of the refugee crisis in the Western Balkans.
The funding will support Serbia, the Republic of Macedonia and the other Western Balkans countries to manage their borders and the migration flows, to accommodate and provide services to the migrants and refugees, as well as to support the host communities.
The new funding comes in addition to more than EUR 59 million of the EU assistance already provided to Serbia and the Republic of Macedonia since the start of the refugee crisis in 2015.
The package will help to further improve the border and migration management capabilities in the region. It will allow for a continued support for the border police to carry out border controls in line with the European standards and to tackle the human smuggling. The funds will also provide a further support to the authorities responding to the basic needs of the migrants or refugees, such as the accommodation, health services and protection, targeting in particular the most vulnerable groups. Support will also be provided to those migrants who wish to voluntarily return to their countries of origin, reads the press release.
