Solidarity in times of hardship

European Union Delegation to TT

Statement on the occasion of World Refugee Day 2021

As the world continues to battle covid19, it is easy to forget about the vulnerable in our midst who struggle the most. "World Refugee Day" is an opportune time to acknowledge and reflect upon the hardships of one such community – migrants and refugees. These groups, who typically deal with an array of difficulties and obstacles in their host countries, have lately found their struggles compounded by the social, economic, medical and psychological difficulties caused by the pandemic.

Since 2015, over 5.6 million Venezuelans have left their homes, with over 4.6 million remaining in the Latin America and Caribbean region. The continuous cycle of economic deterioration leading to violence and insecurity inside Venezuela, made worse by the lack of access to food, medicine and essential services, has accelerated this mass displacement. The countries and communities in the region, including TT, that are hosting this displaced population have been under increased pressure as they each also wrestle the social and economic challenges caused by the covid19 pandemic. This country has seen a rapid influx of migrants and refugees from Venezuela, leading to the “Inter-Agency Coordination Platform for Refugees and Migrants from Venezuela” (R4V) projecting that for 2021 the refugee and migrant population in TT will be an estimated 31,000 people.

Urgent support is therefore needed, both for the migrant population and for the countries and communities who continue to welcome and integrate them into their societies.

For years, the European Union and its member states have been supporting Venezuelan refugees and their host communities. In TT beginning in 2020, as part of our Team Europe global response to covid19, the European Union Delegation to TT and the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands have been providing support to the local migrant population who lack access to the social protection measures implemented by TT government. The 18-month project, which is being implemented by the TT Red Cross Society, provides immediate humanitarian assistance to migrant families including food, mental health and psychosocial support, and basic health screenings for children.

Another project for Euro 2.7 million (nearly USD$ 3.3 million) has recently been approved to provide protection, education and healthcare for Venezuelan refugee and migrant children in six Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) countries, including TT. Further, the European Union will implement another regional project with a budget of Euro 16 million (approx USD$19.23 million) entitled “Fostering local communities of solidarity for refugees and migrants from Venezuela,” which in TT will include the city of Chaguanas among nine other cities in LAC. The project, implemented by UN Habitat, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), is designed to show that migrants and refugees can make positive contributions to socio-economic and cultural fabric of their host cities and communities.

Earlier this week the “International Donors' Conference in Solidarity with Venezuelan Refugees and Migrants 2021” took place. It follows conferences in May 2020, and in October 2019, that the EU organised together with UNHCR and IOM, which aimed to raise awareness about the crisis, as well as to mobilise donor funds. The conference, this year hosted by Canada and with the support of the UNHCR, IOM, Spain and the European Union, brought together over 40 countries along with UN agencies, international financial institutions and representatives of national and international civil society to take stock of the situation, strengthen coordination and mobilise resources, including access to vaccines.

Arising from this year’s conference, the EU has pledged another Euro 147 million to the Venezuela migrant crisis. This is on top of Euro 318 million already allocated since 2018. This new support will focus on humanitarian assistance (Euro 82 million); development cooperation, focusing in particular on the social and economic integration of migrants and the host communities most affected by the crisis (Euro 50 million); and assistance through the EU Foreign Policy Instrument (Euro 15million) that will target the most vulnerable migrants – unaccompanied minors, single parent households, women and girls at risk of being trafficked and prey to violence, the elderly and LGBTI people.

These outcomes reinforce the continuous and increasing attention that the European Union, in partnership with the wider international community, is devoting to this humanitarian crisis in the region.

The European Union is uniquely positioned, by its own recent experience, having itself dealt with a critical refugee situation across Europe since 2014. We understand the challenges of host countries, but at the same time we are committed to humanitarian interventions to support displaced persons. We commend the efforts of state and local authorities, civil society organisations, community groups and other stakeholders in TT who have whole-heartedly stepped in to help. As the worsening of the pandemic makes it even more urgent to assist refugees, migrants, and their host communities in the region, the EU pledges to continue help as much as we can.