The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation has arranged for a comprehensive financing of 2.5 million euros through the Africa Fund to support the activities of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Niger and Egypt. The 1.5-million-euro project titled “Direct Assistance to Abandoned Migrants” aims to boost the presence of the IOM in the north-eastern regions of Niger bordering with Algeria, in order to provide emergency assistance and medical aid to migrants and support their voluntary return to their Countries of origin. The “Support and Increase Healthcare Access for migrants and vulnerable Egyptian host community members” project is financed with one million euros and aims to improve the access to medical assistance of migrants and of particularly vulnerable Egyptian hosting communities by building the IOM’s operating capacity in the Country.
The IOM is the UN Agency for Migration and it operates in the main Countries of origin and transit of migrants with the aim of providing a safe, orderly and regular management of the migration phenomenon. In Niger, through the support given by Italy from 2017 to date, the IOM has assisted more than 15,000 irregular migrants to voluntarily return to their own Countries of origin in decent and safe conditions and in the full respect of human rights. In Egypt, a Country of origin, transit and destination of large migration flows, the IOM is engaged in providing primary healthcare and medical services to the most vulnerable groups such as unaccompanied minors and the victims of trafficking.