IOM provided advice to 1,607 clients and services to other foreigners in their integration into Slovakia, assisted 26 migrants with returning home from Slovakia, arranged the preparation and transfer of 40 refugees during their resettlement through Slovakia to the US and Sweden and held a conference and other activities as the coordinator of activities of the European Migration Network (EMN) in Slovakia.

IOM Migration Information Center (MIC) – Support for the Integration of Foreigners in Slovakia

From 1 January to 30 June 2017 MIC provided counselling to 1,607 individual clients. In total, MIC provided 2,464 consultations, 331 of them were provided in person, 1,084 through e-mail and 1,049 by phone at the MIC Helpline 0850 211 478. The MIC web page www.mic.iom.sk, which contains information and guidelines regarding important areas of life and residence of foreigners in Slovakia, has reached 141,267 page views during the first half-year of 2017.

MIC continues to provide open courses of the Slovak language and courses of cultural orientation for foreigners. The courses of the Slovak language were attended by 502 and the socio-cultural courses by 73 participants.

You can find more information about MIC activities and services for foreigners on our web page: www.mic.iom.sk.

IOM Assistance to Migrants with Return and After Their Return Home

During the first half of 2017, IOM provided its services to 26 migrants who opted for voluntary return from Slovakia to their country of origin. Migrants returned to 10 countries, mostly to Iraq (8) and Ukraine (7) but also to Kosovo (2), Pakistan (2), Serbia (2), Afghanistan (1), Georgia (1), Morocco (1), Russia (1) and Vietnam (1). Since 2004, 1,400 migrants returned to 62 countries from Slovakia with the assistance of IOM through the Assisted Voluntary Return and Reintegration Programme (AVRR).

Besides the help with return, IOM also provides migrants with the assistance after their return to a country of origin. From January to the end of June 2017, reintegration assistance worth of €11,083.55 was received by eight migrants after their return to India, Kosovo, Afghanistan, Iraq, Georgia and Ukraine. Migrants have the greatest interest in using reintegration assistance mainly to start their own business or to enter into a partnership with already established company that will ensure their living income after return. They also often need temporary accommodation and material assistance for the reconstruction of the housing.

More information about the AVRR Programme is available on www.avr.iom.sk.

Humanitarian Transfer of Refugees through Slovakia

Between January and June 2017 IOM together with its partners arranged the transfer of 40 refugees from the Emergency Transit Centre (ETC) in Humenne to the USA and Sweden which permanently admitted these refugees.

The refugees were of Somali nationality. IOM had transferred them from Eritrea and Yemen to Slovakia which offered them a temporary shelter on its territory. During their stay in Slovakia and with the help of IOM they went through preparations for life in their new countries.

You can find more information about the humanitarian transfer of refugees and persons of concern to UNHCR through Slovakia on the IOM web site.

Coordination of the European Migration Network Activities

From January to June 2017 IOM as the coordinator of the European Migration Network (EMN) National Contact Point for the Slovak Republic prepared three studies and answered to 48 ad hoc queries. In March it organised the EMN conference on the role of municipalities in the integration of refugees. Besides, it organised a coordination meeting for actors in the area of migration and asylum in the Slovak Republic, together with the Migration Office of the Ministry of Interior of the Slovak Republic a thematic meeting about cultural differences and similarities of asylum seekers in Slovakia and with the Bureau of Border and Alien Police of the Police Force Presidium several meetings about legislation on legal and irregular migration to the Slovak Republic.

More information about EMN in the Slovak Republic: www.emn.sk.

Support of IOM Slovakia activities and projects:

IOM Migration Information Center for the support of integration of migrants in Slovakia (Phase IX, individual project). The project is co-financed by European Union from Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF). Home Affairs Funds.

Voluntary Return and Reintegration in Country of Origin (Individual Project). This project is co-funded by the European Union from the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF). Home Affairs Funds.

Humanitarian transfer of refugees and persons of concern to UNHCR through Slovakia: 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 programmes of other resettlement countries. IOM vaccination activities are financed by the US Department of State and Department of Health and Human Services.

European Migration Network (EMN) National Contact Point for the Slovak Republic: