On Wednesday, 5 July, officials of the Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs (hereinafter – the Office) and cooperation partners – representatives of the Ministry of the Interior, the State Agency for Security, the State Border Guard, the Public Integration Fund and the Association of Municipalities of the Aluksne Municipality – visited the branch of the Asylum Seekers Accommodation Centre of Liepna Municipality for official opening.
“Changing geopolitical conditions, as well as the hybrid war by Belarus, may lead to a situation where the Office will have to provide temporary accommodation for a larger number of asylum seekers. The establishment of the ASAC Liepna Branch allows us to be more prepared for a wide range of future asylum scenarios,” emphasizes Maira Roze, Head of the Office.
In the last three years, the number of pending asylum applications in Latvia has tripled, placing a heavy strain on the Latvian asylum reception system. Therefore, taking into account the geopolitical challenges prevailing in the world, which have caused a significant increase in the number of asylum seekers in Latvia, a branch of the Asylum Seekers Centre (hereinafter – ASAC Liepna) with accommodation capacity for up to 252 persons was established in the Liepna Parish boarding house building.
It is expected that the ASAC Liepna, which will be operated by the Office, will be used for accommodation of asylum seekers, as well as to provide temporary accommodation for Ukrainian civilians who are crossing Latvia in transit.
The building has undergone significant technical improvements, including roofing replacement, fencing, renovation of heating, electrical and water supply systems, a fire detection and alarm system, renovation of the kitchen and sanitary facilities (showers, toilets), and cosmetic repairs. The total budget of the project is EUR 3 080 933,15 (90 % – EUR 2 772 839,84 financed by the European Commission and 10 % – EUR 308 093,31 financed by the State budget).
The establishment of the ASAC Liepna Branch was implemented with the support of the European Union Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund Emergency Financial Instrument project HOME/2021/AMIF/AG/EMAS/TF1/LV/0003 “Addressing urgent accommodation and humanitarian needs arising from the increased number of asylum seekers in Latvia”.
Information is prepared by:
OCMA Personnel Management and Public Relations Department
prese@pmlp.gov.lv, 67219561