About three thousand immigrants sent by the Italian authorities will be interned in the new facilities.
The city of Shëngjin is one hour north of Tirana, in Albania. It is a busy tourist destination, but a couple of years ago it also became home to several hundred Afghan refugees after the Taliban regained power in Afghanistan. Today, many are still there and consider it their home, but recently it has been in the news for other types of migrants. At the end of 2023, the Albanian government and the Italian government signed an agreement that would allow migrants found by Italian authorities to be processed in Albania.
Italy will finance 3,000 immigrants in Albania
Between the port of Shëngjin and Gjadër, there will be a capacity for 3,000 people. Their data will be taken and then they will be transferred to Gjadër. The two centers will be closed regime. That means no one can enter or leave. The Italian authorities will monitor and secure them internally, since it is technically Italian soil. Externally, the perimeter will be patrolled by Albanian authorities. When migrants are in the centers, they will be provided with medical care, legal assistance and basic needs such as food and toiletries. “Everything is financed by the Italian government.”
One of the centers will be ready to accept people starting August 15, which means the official August 1 deadline will not be met. There will be a capacity of one thousand people who will be received, meanwhile, the work continues in Chicken, which we will see in a moment. They confirmed to me that both centers will be fully operational, at full capacity, in early September.
