Signing of agreements with local authorities on the reception of refugees

Signing of agreements with local authorities on the reception of refugees

The Minister for Social Affairs and Housing and the mayors of the town of Hafnarfjörður, 
 The municipalities of Akureyri and Kópavogur today signed agreements to receive 55 Syrian refugees, who are expected to arrive in the country next month.

Preparations for the reception of the refugees have been underway for some time in cooperation with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). The group consists of ten families; 20 adults and 35 children, and all are staying in refugee camps in Lebanon. Of the group, 23 will settle in Akureyri, 17 in Hafnarfjörður and 15 in Kópavogur.

Eygló Harðardóttir, Minister for Social Affairs and Housing, says it is a pleasure that the time has now come to welcome the refugees to the country: „I am confident that the local authorities and others with a role to play will do everything in their power to give the people the best possible welcome, so that they can feel at home here and integrate into Icelandic society. We, the people of the country, should unite around this project and take pride in doing the best we can.“

Two-year support agreement

A new provision in the agreements signed today is that the reception programme will last for two years, instead of the previous one. This is in line with feedback from local authorities, who, based on experience, believe that refugees require support following their arrival in the country for a longer period than previously anticipated. It is anticipated that the state's payments to the municipalities over the term of the agreement will total 173.4 million krónur.

Haraldur L. Haraldsson, the mayor, says that the signing of the agreements to receive 17 refugees in Hafnarfjörður is a very welcome step. „Preparations for the people's arrival have been underway for several weeks, and emphasis is being placed on carrying out this important project to a high standard. We in Hafnarfjörður draw on the experience of welcoming a refugee family from Afghanistan who came to us last year. A project manager has been appointed who will, among other things, be responsible for providing services and support to these new residents of the municipality.“

Í 
Guidelines of the Refugee Committee  In relation to the reception and assistance of refugees, the status and rights of refugees are defined, the nature of the assistance they are to receive immediately after their arrival in the country is addressed, and the division of costs between the state and the relevant local authorities is set out. Broadly speaking, these tasks involve providing people with accommodation, social advice, education and training, healthcare, assistance with job-seeking, and financial support for their livelihood.

In accordance with the Refugee Committee's guidelines, advisory groups on the support and integration of refugees will be established, with two representatives from the local authority, a representative of the local Red Cross branch and a representative from the Ministry of Welfare, who is the chair of the group.
 

The Red Cross in Iceland is involved in the reception of refugees in each municipality, where it provides them with essential household items and also oversees support families who are tasked with assisting the refugees with their integration. The Ministry of Welfare and the Red Cross enter into an agreement on the implementation of these projects.

Attachments

• Refugee Agency's guidelines on reception and assistance for groups of refugees (Opens in a new browser tab) 
• (PDF document) Guidelines for local authorities on the reception and support for the social participation of refugees
• (PDF document) Division of responsibilities between the receiving municipality and the Ministry of Welfare
• (PDF document) Agreement between the Ministry of Welfare and the City of Hafnarfjörður on the reception of refugees
• (PDF document) City of Hafnarfjörður – budget for the reception of refugees