Europe donates 2.5 mi euros to help Venezuelans in Brazil
Moved by the humanitarian crisis sparked by the large amount of Venezuelans fleeing into Brazil, European governments decided to donate 2.5 million euros to help provide shelter to refugees in other Brazilian cities, where Venezuelans will likely find better living and working conditions, said Ambassador João Cravinho, head of the European Union’s delegation in Brazil.
At the moment, the cities of Boa Vista—state capital of Roraima—as well as Pacaraima, a town on the border with Venezuela, also in Roraima, are the main destinations of those who come to Brazil from the neighboring country in search of shelter. These cities, however, are not prepared to receive the thousands of incoming Venezuelan families, who end up living in centers for the homeless and housing units provided by the city authorities and human rights organizations.
The funds donated by the European Union will be available by June, the ambassador announced. Cravinho went on to caution, however, that further efforts must be made by other Brazilian cities to help accommodate the newcomers. “It should be enough if another 15 or 25 cities could receive 100 or 150 people. That would make a huge difference,” he said.
Sadly, the number of Venezuelan refugees to be relocated from Roraima is still far from meeting their needs, Cravinho argued. Some dozens of refugees were resettled to São Paulo, and a hundred people were taken to Cuiabá, in Mato Grosso, he went on to mention. Dozens or hundreds of people are also expected to be moved to Florianópolis, in the southern state of Santa Catarina.
Cravinho described the initiative as just an amount raised in an emergency move. “I believe more [help] is to come,” he declared. The money will be distributed in Brazil by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and by the United Nations Population Fund, in partnership with NGOs, in close collaboration with the presidency.
In order to adapt well to the new cities, Venezuelan families will also have the chance to take short professional training courses. “We will invest in creating the conditions necessary for the refugees to take jobs in other cities across the country,” Cravinho remarked. “We’ll invest in the protection of women. In refugee communities, women are extremely vulnerable,” he said. In Brazil, violence against women is more striking in Roraima.
Colombia
In another decision, the European Union granted 2.5 million euros for Venezuelan refugees seeking shelter in Colombia, a country that also shares national borders with Venezuela.
