The UN 's refugee agency on Wednesday congratulated Greece on reducing the number of migrants housed in cramped conditions on island camps, but called on Athens to now integrate refugees into society to hep tackle COVID-19.
Asylum seekers and migrants in the Reception and Identification Center of Moria, Lesbos after a fire broke out, on March 16, 2020. (File photo: AFP)
According to the UNHCR, the number of asylum seekers on the five Greek islands, which have become an entry point for those seeking to reach the EU,has fallen for the first time since January 2019
In April there were 38,291 people in the camps, down from 42,052 in February, the UN body said.
This was due to "a stark decrease of arrivals to land and sea borders" from neighbouring Turkey and the transfer of vulnerable migrants to mainland Greece, according to Philippe Leclerc, the UNHCR's representative in the country.
The numbers arriving are down due to restrictions on movement imposed by Turkey to stem the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, as well as intensified Greek patrols on its borders.
Nevertheless, the people still living on the islands of Lesbos, Chios, Samos, Leros and Kos continue to suffer from overcrowding and unhealthy conditions in camps built to hold a total of 5,400 migrants, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said.
"We saw the Greek response to COVID-19 and it has done very well and swiftly," Leclerc told an online press conference.
But he appealed to the Greek government to allow refugees "to make their own living and integrate into the Greek society... to help these people to stand on their feet again," and allow the island camps to be closed.
Greece, faced with an ageing population and a struggling health system, imposed early anti-virus restrictions and has been hit less badly by the coronavirus than many European nations.
Leclerc suggested that the refugees could help in the agriculture sector which is suffering due to the restrictions on movement for the normal seasonal workers from neighbouring countries.