November 17, 2023 The General Secretariat of the Organization of American States (GS/OAS) and the Government of the Republic of Costa Rica, through the General Directorate of Migration and Foreigners and University of Costa Rica Foundation, signed an agreement on Friday November 10 that establishes the starting point for the project “Strengthening the Identification and Referral of Persons Applying for Refugee Status and/or with Profiles of Special Vulnerability through the Modernization of Costa Rica’s Refugee Unit Platform.”
The project will be implemented between 2023 and 2024 with funding from the Comprehensive Regional Protection and Solutions Framework Fund (MIRPS Fund), established within the OAS and administered by its Department of Social Inclusion.
With the implementation of this project, improvements will be made to the Refugee Unit’s procedures, making it possible to provide prompt attention to refugee status applicants deserving of international protection. Approximately 23,000 people will benefit from this project, as well as nearly 10,000 other refugee status applicants with some type of vulnerability, located throughout Costa Rican territory.
The initiative is part of the first portfolio of projects of the MIRPS Fund, launched with the pioneering contribution of Spain.
The event was attended by the Director General of Migration and Foreigners, Martha González Vindas; the Representative of the OAS General Secretariat in Costa Rica, Milagro Martínez; the Ambassador of Spain in Costa Rica, Eva Martínez Sánchez; the Deputy Director of International Cooperation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship, Paola Porras Pastrán; the Senior Protection Officer of UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, Francisco Martínez; the Regional Coordinator of the MIRPS Fund, Melissa Pocasangre Mijango; and the Executive Delegate of the University of Costa Rica Foundation, José Alberto Moya Segura.
- Saturday, November 16, 2024