The Canarian government is hoping that a promise by Spain to begin the redistribution of young migrants to other parts of the country in the coming weeks will be met this time.
The regional authorities have seen multiple attempts to have the young migrants who arrived in the Canares by boat from west Africa frustrated by the failure of the Spanish government to fulfil agreements to transfer them to facilities on the mainland.
As reported here, at present the youngsters – who cannot be returned to their home countries due to their age – are being looked after by the Canaries in centres which have been forced to accommodate many more than they are designed to cater for.
Spain’s Ministry for Migration has now confirmed that discussions are at an advanced stage with organisations and regional authorities in various parts of the country to establish their capacity to take a first group (as yet unquantified) of the unaccompanied minors. Although no specific date has been given, it is reported that the transfers will begin within two weeks.
Coinciding with the news, the Spanish government has approved a package of 40 million euros to fund places for up to 1250 young migrants on the mainland, in compliance with an order by the country’s Supreme Court, which has rebuked it on several occasions for not fulfilling its obligations towards the youngsters.
Earlier this month, representatives of local and regional authorities from across the European Union received a first-hand account of what life is like as a teenage migrant staying in the Canaries after arriving from Africa.
Over a hundred members of the influential CIVEX Commission of Europe’s Committee of the Regions – from countries ranging from Sweden in the north to Greece in the south and from political parties covering the full spectrum – visited two facilities used to house the unaccompanied teenagers in Tenerife and hear from staff about the challenges of providing quality care in centres which are currently overcrowded due to the sheer number of arrivals.
