Migration - Association of towns and municipalities demands exemption from asylum costs
The German City and State Association sees the decrease in asylum applicant numbers as only temporary relief and demands the complete release of municipalities from asylum costs. "Basically, it is of central importance that cities and municipalities are fully relieved from the costs for accommodation, care and integration," said the deputy managing director, Uwe Zimmermann, to the Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland (RND).
"The slight relaxation that currently becomes apparent in migration affairs gives municipalities, cities and districts some leeway to sort things out and organize themselves," he added further. However, the decrease in asylum applicant numbers only represents a point in time relief.
Zimmermann: Integration is a lengthy process
According to the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF), 71,061 people filed an asylum application in Germany between January and March 2024. Compared to the comparison period of the previous year (80,978 first-time applications), this means a decrease of 19.2 percent.
Zimmermann continued, "It is often underestimated that integration is a lengthy process. In a quantitatively overburdened system - as is the case in kindergartens and schools to some extent - it can only lead to long-term relaxation if the influx reduces permanently and not only temporarily."
- The Association of Municipalities in Germany agrees with the temporary decrease in the number of refugee asylum seekers, but they strongly advocate for the permanent release of municipalities from covering the associated costs.
- Uwe Zimmermann, the deputy managing director of the Association of Municipalities, emphasized that integration is a drawn-out process, and only a permanent reduction in the influx of asylum seekers can provide lasting relief for overburdened systems like kindergartens and schools.
- The Berlin city government is actively promoting integration efforts for refugees, working towards their full integration into German society, addressing issues such as language learning, employment, and cultural understanding.
