site.btaUN High Commissioner for Refugees Congratulates Bulgaria on Adequate Response to Migrant Pressure

At a meeting here on Friday, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) representative in Bulgaria Seda Kuzucu told Prime Minister Nikolay Denkov that in the last years, the migrant pressure towards Bulgaria has been constantly increasing. "The UNHCR highly appreciates your country's adequate response to this serious pressure," she told the Bulgarian Prime Minister, as quoted by the Government Information Service. 

The UNHCR representative congratulated Bulgaria on its support for Ukrainian refugees seeking safety from the war. Nearly one-third of the Ukrainians granted temporary protection in Bulgaria are highly educated and willing to certify their language skills, which will further ease their integration on the labour market, it transpired during the talks. Ever more Ukrainian children are being enrolled in Bulgarian schools. In this context, the UNHCR expressed readiness to provide additional support for Bulgaria. Since the start of the war in Ukraine, the UNHCR has doubled the number of its partners with whom it works in Bulgaria, Kuzucu noted.

The Prime Minister noted Bulgaria's wish to continue its cooperation and dialogue with the UNHCR, including at the highest level. In 2019, during the 1st Global Refugee Forum, Bulgaria made six commitments which it has been successfully implementing for the fourth consecutive year. The Bulgarian government, in partnership with other interested parties, is ready to discuss and approve new commitments that it might announce during the 2nd Global Refugee Forum in December 2023. In this relation, the Cabinet relies on the assistance of the UNHCR office in Bulgaria.