Government Revokes Refugee Integration Ordinance

The caretaker government held an extraordinary meeting on Friday to revoke an ordinance by the previous government on integration of refugees, BTA said.

Announcing their decision, Labour and Social Policy Minister Galab Donev and Interior Minister Plamen Uzunov said that the ordinance was revoked "in order to find incentives for better integration of refugees in this country".

A working group of experts from several ministries will have by April 7 to prepare a new ordinance and submit it for approval to the government.

Adopted last August, the ordinance which the caretaker government scrapped, provided for arrangements which municipalities could make for the integration of foreigners who have obtained refugee or another international protected status. These included arrangements for the settlers' housing accommodation, kindergartens and schools for the children, registration with a general practitioner, registration at the National Employment Agency and the Agency for Social Assistance. The integration arrangements were meant to use financing from international and national programme, including EU funding.