MaltaMedia.com

70 immigrants returned to their country of origin in the past 18 months, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Tonio Borg said at the closing seminar of DAR project.

The Minister was addressing the closing seminar of phase one of DAR, an 18-month pilot project co-funded by the European Union, with the objective of developing and implementing a comprehensive Voluntary Return and Reintegration Programme (AVR) in Malta.

The programme had set itself 50 voluntary returns under this scheme; indeed it exceeded their expectation by returning 70, the Minister said. He also highlighted that they did so on ‘their own free will’.

Phase two of the project is to concentrate on another batch of 70 immigrants who have registered with DAR project to return to their home country. This should be completed in 2 to 3 months.

The success of the project was also attributed to the different approach Malta adopted from other countries.

Whereas, other countries prefer to do deal with countries of origin by giving them development assistance in return for accepting to have irregular migrants back; Malta preferred to give people money, thus encouraging the development of a more entrepreneurial community in countries, the Minister Said.

Tonio Borg said that the migrants who have kept in touch with have set up activities range from running a hair salon to bricklaying, running a taxi service, selling mobile phones, sheep rearing, selling spare parts for cars.

He also added that the government also assisted a ‘couple of young Maltese entrepreneurs in taking a closer look at the opportunities which African countries offer.’

‘One of them has set up a number of businesses in Ghana; in one of these businesses alone he employs 84 persons, seven of whom were taken from the immigrant community in Malta.’

Minister Tonio Borg also said that since 2001 almost 12,000 irregular migrants and asylum seekers have reached the Maltese shores which has created a huge burden on the Island’s resources – accommodation, health, welfare, integration, work – to mention but a few.