01/03/2022
In Colombia, the process announced by President Ivan Duque in February to grant temporary protected status to over a million Venezuelans has already started. Grandi met the President and other national and local authorities and thanked them and the people of Colombia for this generous move, that will pave the way to the full inclusion of refugees and migrants from Venezuela. He also met with Venezuelan refugees and migrants to hear from them about their needs and concerns.
Grandi then travelled to Ecuador, where President Guillermo Lasso announced a new regularization process for Venezuelans in the country. Ecuador plays host to an estimated 430,000 Venezuelan refugees and migrants and has a long tradition of asylum and has recognized over 70,000 refugees, the majority from Colombia. In the capital, Quito, Grandi met the Vice-President and other government officials, members of civil society, including refugee and migrant associations. He also joined the private sector in the launch of a new strategy to integrate those forcibly displaced in the labour market in order to support their socio-economic integration.
'Refugees and others displaced can become real agents of change and contribute to the communities hosting them if given a chance and the tools to thrive,' Grandi said. 'In this sense, the rest of the world can learn a great deal about the inclusion and integration of refugees in Latin America and the Caribbean.'
