This contribution by the Government of Switzerland for the health sector is ensuring a much needed flexibility for UNHCR to help BiH authorities to fill remaining gaps within the health sector, as they respond to the urgent basic needs of refugees and asylum-seekers in BiH.
Thanks to the donation of the Government of Switzerland, the Refugee Reception Centre Salakovac was today equipped with a new minivan that will be used for the safe transport of asylum-seekers and refugees residing in the Centre for required health care follow up in Mostar.
The handover ceremony of the vehicle with a total value of EUR 35,000, procured by the UNHCR, took place today in in Salakovac, where the BiH Minister of Refugees and Human Rights (MHRR), Ms. Semiha Borovac, received the keys on behalf of the Centre.
“We are very grateful to the Government of Switzerland for the allocated funds and to UNHCR for the purchase of the minivan that will be used to transport asylum-seekers for medical examinations, especially when it comes to specialist diagnostics, ” said Minister Borovac, adding that the MHRR’s goal is not to make health conditions of the Salakovac Centre beneficiaries depend on transport availability to physicians in Mostar. Ms. Borovac pointed out that this was not the only form of cooperation with the Government of Switzerland, nor with UNHCR that have been Ministry’s partners in numerous projects, which is very important for BiH. “With today’s visit we also wanted to show that the Centre in Salakovac bears the image of the most organized form of collective housing and it is our intention to keep this image in the future, by accommodating beneficiaries in the best and most humane way”, concluded Minister Borovac.
The Refugee Reception Centre Salakovac currently accommodates more than 180 refugees and asylum-seekers, mostly families with children, and in the past period, the Centre staff faced a number of medical cases that required urgent interventions in the medical institutions in Mostar, which is 15 kilometres away, relying on availability of transportation of the supporting organizations working within the Centre.
Mr. Patrick Egli, Deputy Director of Cooperation of the Embassy of Switzerland in Bosnia and Herzegovina, stressed that Switzerland’s humanitarian support would enable provision of health care for at least 1,000 refugees and migrants throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina. “This is not just about numbers, it is about effective prevention of the spreading of communicable diseases, responding rapidly to the health needs and alleviating human suffering”, he said, adding that the provision of a vehicle for medical transportation would also ensure that the existing vehicles are not used at the expense of the local population.
In 2019, almost 11,000 refugees and migrants arrived in BiH, most of whom have expressed intention to seek asylum in this country. As of 30 June, according to the statistics of the BiH Ministry of Security, 197 people formally requested asylum in BiH in 2019, while overall, since the beginning of the increased arrivals of refugees and migrants in BiH in 2018, 1,767 asylum claims were lodged. This has created serious challenges for the health system in BiH – as it was not designed to allow or provide access to primary and secondary health care for such a large number of asylum-seekers/refugees/migrants, whether living privately or in temporary reception centres.
“This valuable donation is a generous expression of solidarity and direct support of the Government of Switzerland to the people in need, here in Salakovac. It will help ensure timely transportation of the beneficiaries of the Centre in need of health services, but it shall also benefit the local population as it will reduce the burden put on local resources”, said Anne-Christine Eriksson, UNHCR Regional Representative for South-East Europe and Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
This contribution by the Government of Switzerland for the health sector is ensuring a much needed flexibility for UNHCR to help BiH authorities to fill remaining gaps within the health sector, as they respond to the urgent basic needs of refugees and asylum-seekers in BiH.
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