Availability of EU funds for the protection of unaccompanied minors in Greece

Subject: Availability of EU funds for the protection of unaccompanied minors in Greece

Shelters for unaccompanied minors in Greece, which are currently housing 1 856 children and adolescents aged 12 to 18, operate under the Greek Sectoral Programme for the Development of Migration and Asylum 2021-2025, 75 % of which is covered by EU funds.

The shelters are currently operating on a funding gap of almost five months and care will soon become unsustainable1. The Managing Authority of the Greek Ministry of Immigration and Asylum has acknowledged its culpability for the delay, citing an ’increased workload’ and the gap resulting from the new phase of funding under the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF), but has made no concrete commitment to meeting its obligations.

The consequences of financial insecurity are devastating for the children and the workers who care for them, and all the efforts made in recent years to support unaccompanied minors are being undone.

1. Is the Commission aware of this dire situation?

2. Have funds been paid to the Greek services under the AMIF 2021-2027 or through another instrument for the accommodation of unaccompanied minors, and, if so, when?

3. How will the Commission ensure that EU funds are used by the Greek Government for their intended purpose and in a timely and effective manner?

1 https://www.avgi.gr/koinonia/410629_kindynos-epistrofis-sto-haos

Answer given by Ms Johansson on behalf of the European Commission

(8 September 2022)

From 2017 until January 2022, Home Affairs Funds have supported the establishment and operation of shelters in mainland Greece for unaccompanied minors (2).

Since February 2022, the Ministry of Migration and Asylum is fully financially supporting the implementation of the scheme under the Greek Development Programme (3).

It is expected that the shelters will be supported at a later stage under the 2021-2027 Greek Asylum Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF) programme, which is currently under preparation.

Expenditure falling within the scope of the programme has been eligible for a contribution from the AMIF since 1 January 2021.

Although the Commission cannot make payments to the Greek authorities until the AMIF programme is approved, any expenses falling under the scope of the AMIF incurred after the start of the eligibility period and before the adoption of the programmes can be reimbursed at a later stage.

In the case of the Member States programmes, the Commission has monitoring, control and audit obligations in line with the EU Financial Regulation and the sector-specific rules.

More specifically, for the Home Affairs Funds, the Commission services carry out an examination regarding the completeness, accuracy and veracity of the accounts based on the expenditure declared by the Managing Authority each year under its Home Affairs Funds programmes.

Prior to the submission to the Commission, the annual accounts should be certified for correctness by the national Managing and Audit Authorities.

⋅1∙ https://www.avgi.gr/koinonia/410629_kindynos-epistrofis-sto-haos

⋅2∙ From 2017 until April 2021, EUR50 million (75% EU contribution) were provided under the 2014-2020 Greek Asylum Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF)

National Programme to support the establishment and operation of shelters in the mainland for unaccompanied children. On top of this assistance, from April 2021 to January 2022, an additional EUR21.3 million (75% EU contribution) were granted via Emergency Assistance that allowed the continuation of the shelters scheme. ⋅3∙ The call launched by the Ministry under the National Development Programme: https://diavgeia.gov.gr/decision/view/%CE%A14%CE%93%CE%A446%CE%9C%CE

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| | )Additionally, the Commission regularly monitors the implementation of Member States programmes, including on the spot, and carries out system and ex-post audits on the use of EU funding.