Previous Story
Ecuador raises assistance points in border crossings before affluence of Venezuelans
Posted On 16 Aug 2018
Ecuadornews:
The Ministry of Economic and Social Inclusion of Ecuador (MIES) raises several facilities in the main border crossings with Colombia, to face the humanitarian situation caused by the massive migration of Venezuelans.
Following the declaration of emergency issued last week by the Ecuadorian government in the provinces of Carchi, Pichincha and El Oro, the aforementioned Ministry deploys a series of contingency measures in border areas to alleviate the long wait and vulnerability of the smallest migrants.
Thus, in the international bridge of Rumichaca, in Tulcán, capital of the province of Carchi, the MIES made available a recreational space for recreational attention and emotional support for children in migration situation, according to a statement released by that ministry.
It also installed three resting tents and an information office with 24-hour a day service seven days a week, as well as collecting information from the priority attention groups. The director of the MIES in Carchi, Vladimir Velasco, said that since the weekend the permanent information office is in operation, where they also deliver food rations and blankets donated by international cooperation.
The World Food Program and Unicef collaborate in this work. The priority recipients are children, older adults and people with disabilities. The communiqué states that the recreational space has been in operation since May and aims to serve as a point of recreation, entertainment and games for the children of the migrant families who are on their way to Rumichaca while carrying out immigration procedures.
The coordination of the Ministry in zone 1, which includes the provinces of Esmeraldas, Carchi, Sucumbíos and Imbabura, articulates humanitarian work in coordination with international organizations, state institutions and local governments, for the installation of three temporary rest tents that receive families of priority groups and single mothers with boys and girls.
Since the beginning of the year, approximately 547,000 Venezuelans have entered Ecuador through the Colombian border, according to the Ecuadorian Foreign Ministry. However, the influx increased in the first week of August, when about 30,000 Venezuelans entered the country, more than 4,000 per day, due to a rumor that the new Colombian president, Iván Duque, was going to close the borders. (I)
