Ecuador works on policies to welcome Venezuelans

The Vice President of the Republic, Otto Sonnenholzner , inaugurated the afternoon of this Tuesday, January 21, 2020 |, the XII Forum on Migration and Development , meeting that hosts more than 150 countries that will discuss this social phenomenon.

Ecuador works on policies to welcome Venezuelans

Sonnenholzner said that the region is surrounded by stories of migration and that the obligation of all countries, which are affected by this situation, is to do things well and offer opportunities to migrants.

Regarding the crisis in Venezuela, he commented that in the next two years, six million people are expected to leave the neighboring country. “Unfortunately, the political and economic crisis in Venezuela does not look to improve and today it is everyone’s problem that this is resolved; Ecuador is a traditionally receiving country of migration ”.

He stressed that it is necessary to address the migration crisis in Venezuela , not as something emerging, but as a fact, to know what are the steps to follow, “so that the migrant population finds stability and support from the countries where they arrive and join development from the country”.

The migration of Venezuelans to Ecuador is a challenge for the Government. In the last year, the country welcomed 355,000 people, who registered regularly at embassies. It is estimated that there are more than 400,000 Venezuelans in the country, these data show the surveys of the International Organization of Migration (IOM).

The IOM Regional Platform , consisting of 41 participants, expects that this year, 274,000 Venezuelans will enter the national territory, of these 119,000 will pretend to live in Ecuador.

Carlos Velasteguí, Vice Minister of Human Mobility of Ecuador , said the country – despite having an economic decline – supports and manages public protection policies for the Venezuelan community.

He said that the Foreign Ministry with the support of IOM and the UN established the International Cooperation Framework document for People in Mobility. In this it was expected that, in 2018, the State’s investment to meet the needs of this population in mobility was close to $ 90 million, by 2021 it would reach $ 550 million.

Given this social phenomenon, the National Government has facilitated inclusive processes , where the permanence and stability of foreigners is guaranteed . Likewise, the Ministry of Economic and Social Inclusion has invested $ 1.5 million in the care of 146,650 Venezuelan migrants.

The State has held meetings with neighboring countries, in multilateral frameworks, has participated in meetings, forums related to the problem of Venezuelan migration , bilateral meetings with Colombia and Peru.

Since 2015 the flow of migration increased . An estimated 4.7 million left their country. The 77% who migrated are in South America.

President asks democratic exit to this crisis

During his stay in Davos , President Lenín Moreno , who participates in the World Economic Forum, granted interviews to foreign media outlets, in which he referred to the mass exodus of Venezuelans to countries in the region, especially Ecuador.

The Head of State reiterated the demand made on other occasions to the regime of Nicolás Maduro to give a democratic way out of the Venezuelan crisis. In that sense, he called on the international community to join this demand.

Moreno mentioned that the National Government develops a census of citizens of that country in order to regularize their stay through the delivery of humanitarian visas , so far around 13,500 of those documents have been granted.

The President also reiterated his support for Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó, who mocked the ban on leaving his country established by Chavismo, traveled to Colombia and is expected at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

He mentioned that the 400,000 Venezuelans who are in the national territory carry out different activities to make a living and provide support for their relatives who have not migrated.

https://www.eltelegrafo.com.ec/noticias/sociedad/6/ecuador-politicas-venezolanos