Humanitarian situation in refugee camps in Greece

28.1.2019

Question for written answer E-000435-19
to the Commission
Rule 130
Ivo Belet (PPE)

At the moment, more than 16 400 refugees are accommodated in reception camps on the Greek islands, although the Greek authorities have provided facilities for only 9 200 people there. The shortage of sanitary facilities and of adequate accommodation makes conditions in the camps extremely poor in many cases, particularly in wintertime. In addition, only a limited number of children can attend school in the camps.

The EU has allocated some EUR 1.5 billion to support the Greek authorities in receiving refugees in Greece, less than half of which had been used by the end of December 2018.

In its answer to a previous parliamentary question[1], the Commission announced a financial plan to ensure that the Greek authorities adequately cover reception needs with timely, efficient and effective use of the available EU funding.

What practical measures is the Commission planning to ensure that the European funds intended for the purpose are rapidly deployed by the Greek authorities in order to improve living conditions in the reception camps, and can the Commission provide an update on the plan intended to guarantee this?

• [1] http://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/E-8-2018-000628_NL.html