November 7 (SeeNews) - Italy plans to build facilities in Albania to temporarily accommodate migrants rescued at sea as it tries to decrease the influx of arrivals, Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni said on Monday.
The agreement allows Italy to to establish two migrant reception centres on Albanian territory using Italian funds, Meloni said in a press conference following a meeting in Rome with Albanian prime minister Edi Rama.
A screening centre will be built near the Shengjin port in northwestern Albania, where migrants will disembark from Italian ships, while another centre further inland will accommodate migrants during the remaining asylum or repatriation procedures. If Italy rejects the asylum bids, Albania would deport the migrants.
The centres are to open in spring 2024. They are expected to accommodate up to 3,000 migrants initially, with plans to expand their capacity to process 36,000 migrants annually, Meloni added.
The agreement covers migrants rescued in the Mediterranean by Italian ships but excludes those picked up by non-profit organisations and those arriving directly on Italian coasts and territory, Italian news agency ANSA reported, citing official sources. Children and pregnant women will be excluded from the plan, too.
Albania will provide security and police personnel at the perimeter of the centres, Meloni noted.
The collaboration's goal is to combat human trafficking, prevent irregular migration, and ensure that international protection is provided only to those who qualify, Meloni added.
More than 145,000 people have arrived in Italy by sea so far in 2023, an increase from around 88,000 during the same period in 2022.