A partnership with European governments
KRG to establish counseling center to curb illegal migration
ERBIL, January 18 – A new counseling center established by the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Ministry of Interior hopes to curb illegal migration and generate awareness about its associated risks.
The project, backed by the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) in Vienna, is financially supported by the Norwegian government’s Migration Foundation.
The first counseling center will be opened in Erbil governorate, with subsequent plans to extend the project to Sulaymaniyah, and to other governorates and autonomous administrations, as outlined by the KRG’s Joint Crisis Coordination Centre (JCCC).
Representatives from ICMPD in Vienna, the Danish Embassy, the Norwegian Embassy in Oman, the Swedish Migration Board, and the Norwegian Migration Board have visited the JCCC to discuss the counseling center’s establishment.
Anticipated to launch in April this year, the project aims to address the increasing migration rate from the Kurdistan Region to European countries, with statistics from the Association of Returned Refugees indicating that 21,000 individuals migrated in 2023 alone.