The Government Delegation in Melilla hosted a working meeting this morning to coordinate the procedure of relocation and transfer of unaccompanied migrant minors in situations of extraordinary contingency.
The meeting, chaired by the Delegate of the Government, Sabrina Moh, was attended by the Director General of Children and Adolescent Rights of the Ministry of Youth and Childhood, Sandra Gómez de Garmendia; the Assistant Director General of Children and Adolescent Programs, Itziar Abad; the advisor of the Cabinet of the Minister, Saúl Gómez Alberola; and the Director of the Work and Immigration Area of the Delegation, Elena Nieto Delgado. In addition, the heads of the Superior Police Headquarters, the Civil Guard Command, the Prosecutor’s Office of the Area of Melilla and the General Directorate of Minors and the Family of the Autonomous City have been present.
Coordination and follow-up
During the meeting, the coordination mechanisms between all the institutions involved have been addressed and it has been agreed to establish a system of weekly monitoring of cases, in order to strengthen collaboration and provide an effective response to any situation of migratory contingency that may occur, all linked to the best interests of the child.
The Government Delegate has positively valued this joint work space, stressing that the objective is “to advance the protection of minors, ensuring that these children receive a dignified and humanitarian reception”.
In the words of Moh, these measures represent “a structural and solidarity response that prevents a single territory from having to face alone a pressure that, at certain times, can exceed its capacity”.
Extraordinary resources for Melilla
In this context, the Director-General for the Rights of Children and Adolescents has recalled that, of the 22 million euros of the extraordinary credit approved by the Government of Spain for the care of unaccompanied migrant children and adolescents, Melilla will receive 4.5 million.
These resources will be used to strengthen immediate care and reception, as well as information, counselling and psychosocial support activities, including schooling, social and labour integration and the social inclusion of minors.
With this meeting, the Government of Spain reinforces its commitment to the protection of migrant children and to institutional cooperation as a way to guarantee the rights of all children who arrive in Melilla in a situation of special vulnerability.