The number of Ukrainian migrants to Belgium is increasing as the crisis in Ukraine continues. Currently, a thousand Ukrainians are likely to seek refuge in Brussels each month, half the number projected initially.
According to projections from information based on estimations by the Brussels Capital Region, depending on the current inflow of 1,000 migrants each month, by the end of the year, one out of every 100 people in Brussels will be Ukrainian.
As of June, the Brussels region could accommodate 7,000 people, or 15 percent of Belgium’s total reception capacity, which is 5 percent higher than expected.
The President-Minister of the Brussels Region, Rudi Vervoort, “Brussels is facing an enormous challenge to integrate these people,” It is feared that by the end of summer, the maximum number of places available will no longer be sufficient.
Moving ahead, Brussels expects a combination of community and individual reception spaces.
A total of ten office buildings will be converted into 1,500 communal spaces. It will cost €150 for adults and €50 for youngsters to park there. In addition, 1,500 new jobs will be generated in repurposed structures, such as hospitals, hotels, and boarding schools. The monthly rent will be €225 for adults and €75 for youngsters.
It’s unclear whether the region would set up “emergency communities” to host refugees, with just approximately 500 people living in temporary housing.
The Brussels region varies from Flanders in that it focuses more on collective reception sites for migrants, whereas Flanders depends more on private persons to receive them.
According to Pierre Verbeeren, Ukraine coordinator for the Brussels government, the various strategies from the different areas would put pressure on the system, saying: “At a certain point, it will be necessary to sit around the table.”
He has urged Sammy Mahdi, the Secretary of State for Asylum and Migration, to provide further assistance.
For the time being, the federal government is making 1,500 crisis shelter spots accessible, but if the Brussels Region’s predictions are correct, that won’t be enough in the coming months.
