Response to migrant crisis

Habitat Macedonia provides shelter
on the Greece-Macedonia border

Responding to one of the world’s worst crises that currently affects Middle East and Europe, Habitat Macedonia started providing, as of mid-October, shelter for the migrants and refugees that await registration by Macedonian authorities, before they are let to the transit center at the Greece-Macedonia border.

Several thousand migrants and refugees from Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq and many other countries cross the informal border point near the town of Gevgelija every day, on the Balkan route travelling for days and weeks. More than 155,000 were registered on entrance in Macedonia since mid-June 2015, including thousands of families with more than 28,000 children.

Habitat Macedonia’s operations in the border zone have been agreed with the Crisis Management Center of the Macedonian Government, and include field coordination with UNHCR. The operations are supported by Habitat for Humanity’s area office for Europe, Middle East and Africa, after the organization declared Level II response to the crisis.

The next step of the response is planned to include additional shelter, as well as services and non-food items provision for the most vulnerable migrants and refugees. With the worsening of the weather conditions the winterization of the transit center has been also considered an activity of critical importance.

Migrant crisis scene on Greece-Macedonia border before HFH intervention Sep. 2015

Migrant crisis scene on Greece-Macedonia border after HFH intervention Oct. 2015