Status: 08.02.2023 3:30 p.m
In the coming week, municipalities, states and the federal government want to discuss the growing challenge of caring for refugees again. In view of the increasing numbers, many municipalities are reaching their limits and are calling for help.
In view of the high burden on the federal states and municipalities in caring for and accommodating refugees, Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser announced another summit meeting earlier this week. Her ministry has now announced the official date: According to this, on the morning of February 16 – i.e. on Thursday of the coming week – representatives of municipal umbrella organizations and all 16 federal states will meet in Berlin for renewed consultation.
Municipalities lack the places
Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who also commented on the subject of migration in a government statement in the Bundestag, expressly praised Faeser’s initiative for another summit. As things stand, however, he himself will not take part in the consultations – a point that has been sharply criticized by the opposition parties, primarily the Union.
The warning from the municipalities has been getting louder and louder for months: The capacities for caring for refugees are almost or have already been reached. There is a lack of places in accommodation, in schools or daycare centers. The municipalities are pushing for more financial support from the federal government.
Federal government provides real estate
The last refugee summit took place in October. At that time, Faeser assured that additional federal real estate should be made available for the accommodation of refugees. According to information from your ministry, the federal government has provided accommodation for almost 70,000 people. About 64 percent of this is currently being used.
Last November, the federal and state governments also discussed the topics of migration and the care of refugees at the Prime Ministers’ Conference. The federal government expanded its financial support and provided an additional 1.5 billion euros.
Around 29,000 initial applications for asylum in January
Last year, around 244,000 asylum applications were submitted to the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) nationwide, including around 218,000 initial applications. Most of the asylum seekers came from Syria, Afghanistan, Turkey, Iraq and Georgia. According to the authority, 29,072 initial applications for asylum were received in January alone – more than twice as many as in January last year (13,726). At that time, travel restrictions imposed due to the corona pandemic were in effect.
Due to the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine, the pressure has increased significantly again: According to the Federal Ministry of the Interior, around 1.06 million refugees from Ukraine were registered in Germany by February 4th.