Operations

139	Number of personnel (international and national)
10	Number of offices
656,000	Estimated number of people of concern (PoC), including 194,000 displaced people from the subregion with outstanding needs; 450,000 asylum-seekers/refugees from outside the subregion; and12,000 people at risk of statelessness.
USD 45.1 Mio	Overall funding requirements (ExCom-approved 2016 budget)

A. Operational Environment and Strategy

In the first eight months of 2015, two countries in the subregion, Serbia and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, received large numbers of people applying for asylum or expressing their intent to do so. Mostly originating from refugee-producing countries, including the Syrian Arab Republic (Syria), Afghanistan and Iraq, they have been arriving in Greece and then continuing their journey to Western Europe via the western Balkans. Their search for international protection exposes them to enormous risks related to the elements and abuse by smugglers and gangs. Instances of push-backs and the use of violence by law-enforcement authorities have also been reported.
 
In addition, the needs of the populations affected by the conflicts of the 1990s, while decreasing, remain significant in the subregion. UNHCR estimates that, in 2016, approximately 194,000 people affected by the regional conflicts of the 1990s, including 136,500 internally displaced people (IDPs), will still have outstanding needs. 

B. Response and Implementation​

UNHCR has developed a three-pronged strategy to respond to the increasing numbers of people seeking international protection who arrive in South-Eastern Europe:

• Continue to assist governments with the creation of asylum systems that are aligned with applicable international standards, and that include viable local integration opportunities;

 

• Step up protection and border-monitoring activities through the establishment of a regular presence at key locations, while advocating to prevent push-backs and other violations of refugee rights;

 

• Assist governments and civil society to boost reception capacity and identify and address the protection and humanitarian needs of refugees.

To address the outstanding needs of people displaced by the 1990s conflicts, UNHCR will aim to further build the capacity of national institutions and civil society organizations and achieve the largest possible number of solutions ahead of its operational disengagement for this group, planned for the end of 2017.
 
Since the end of 2012, the reported number of persons at risk of statelessness in the region has decreased by 40 per cent, standing at approximately 15,000 in early 2015. The Office will continue to provide legal aid and advocate for solutions for existing stateless populations. UNHCR will also promote the adoption of measures to prevent statelessness, notably through advocacy for accession to the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness by the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.