Around 500-600 war refugees from Ukraine are still arriving in Latvia every month and will continue to receive first-time support, but the overall support programme is being reviewed for the next few years, Dace Meilija, representative of “I Want to Help Refugees” and UN Refugee Agency Latvia representative, told Latvian Radio in an interview on 4 November.
The funding for the Ukrainian refugee support programme will be reviewed in next year’s state budget, but a concrete plan is still being prepared. The expected reduction is due to the increase in the priorities listed in the state budget, primarily defence spending, and it is also time to review the support measures provided by the state to Ukrainian refugees, as this programme is designed in view of a full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
However, the primary support for people arriving from Ukraine in Latvia, especially for vulnerable groups, is set to continue next year, Meilija said.
There will also be a strong focus on Latvian language learning, which has so far often been organised as separate projects and intermittently.
“This needs to continue,” said Meilija.
Asked what has changed in the attitude of Latvian society towards refugees, Meilija stressed that Latvia has come a long way since 2015, when there were few refugees in Latvia.
“Now there is a lot more experience and also challenges, including the polarised attitude of society towards refugees,” she said.
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