The Directorate of Immigration (UDI) have warned that they will shut down 20 reception centers, with a total of 2,100 places, due to fewer asylum seekers.
The reception centers are located throughout Norway, but no reception centers in Oslo and Akershus will be closed.
Twelve ‘ordinary’ reception centers are to be shut down and eight reception centers for unaccompanied minors who are seeking asylum.
‘It is always sad to close down a reception center when one thinks of the employees, the residents who must move on, and those communities that have developed strong ties to the center.
But it is not economically viable to have a lot of empty places when far fewer asylum seekers are now arriving’, said Departmental Director, Borghild Fløtre, of UDI.
Most centers have been given a three month notice period. Well before this time has expired, residents will either be settled in a municipality or moved to another center.
In late January last year, almost 29,000 residents were housed in reception centers in Norway. In January this year, the figure is just under 13,000.
Last year, UDI announced the closure of 11,730 asylum center places. Most of these are already closed, but some have contracts remaining until February or March.
Source: NTB scanpix / Norway Today
