A new group of 120 Somali refugees arrived to Slovakia in September and October 2014. They are accommodated in the Emergency Transit Centre (ETC) in Humenne where they will stay for a maximum period of 6 months. With the assistance of International Organization for Migration (IOM) they will undergo security interviews, medical examinations and cultural orientation courses which will prepare the refugees for life in the country of their resettlement. Afterwards they will be permanently resettled to a country that will receive them and provide them with a new home.

The photo is for illustrative purposes only, IOM Slovakia

The group of Somali refugees is composed mainly of women and families with children. Due to ongoing conflicts in the country and fear for their lives they were forced to flee their home country. For years they remained in a refugee camp in Eritrea without any hope of returning home. Resettlement to a third country turned out to be the only chance for them to begin a new life in safe environment. In the framework of the humanitarian transfer of refugees and persons of concern recognized by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) through the territory of Slovakia, they were provided a temporary shelter on the Slovak territory and IOM transferred them to Slovakia.

This is already a fifth group of Somali refugees from Eritrea who were temporarily admitted by Slovakia based on the trilateral agreement between the Government of the Slovak Republic, UNHCR and IOM. Thanks to this cooperation, the overall number of refugees who found a temporary shelter in Slovakia between August 2009 and October 2015 increased to 769.

The activities of IOM in this project are financed by the US Government through its USRAP Program – United States Refugee Admissions Program or by similar programs of other resettlement countries.