500 extra places here for families fleeing Afghanistan
THE Government has approved a programme providing up to 500 additional places for Afghan family members to come and live in this country.
This will be in addition to the 670 Afghan nationals who have already been granted permission to live in Ireland this year.
There are 1,200 people living in Ireland’s Afghan community, and the new Afghan Admission Programme will allow 500 of their family members to move here.
However, the family members will have to find their own way here and will only be provided with Government assistance once they arrive. Minister for Children Roderic O’Gorman said the Government was working with non-government organisations aiding those trying to flee Afghanistan.
‘There are ways out of the country. There are intermittent flights from Afghanistan, from Kabul, into Qatar, obviously there are land borders as well so we will work with NGOs and look to try and support others as much as we can,’ Mr O’Gorman said.
Minister for Justice Heather Humphreys said the new arrivals will be able to stay for up to two years and must then apply to remain under other refugee programmes.
The Fine Gael minister added: ‘The Government is very conscious of the plight faced by the Afghan people following the... takeover by the Taliban. This is further fuelled by the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, and human rights abuses, violence and fear of reprisals has led to a large number of... persons seeking assistance.
‘The new scheme, which demonstrates our support for people in Afghanistan, will allow current or former Afghan nationals living in Ireland to apply to bring close family members who are vulnerable in Afghanistan or who have fled to a neighbouring country to join them here in Ireland.’
Minister for Overseas Development Aid and Diaspora Colm Brophy also yesterday announced an additional €2million of Irish Aid support for the people of Afghanistan.
‘One in three Afghans is facing crisis levels of food insecurity and more than half of all children under-five are at risk of acute malnutrition,’ he said. The Government funding will support the work of Unicef and the Afghanistan Humanitarian Fund.