On 26.09.2023 SDA hosted a meeting of the Monitoring Committee at the Sofia Municipal Council on Penalties and Detention. The Commission includes experts from different directorates and institutions in the municipality who work in the field of internal order and security, crime prevention within groups at risk, social assistance, etc. At the invitation of the committee, SDA presented its activities in the field of integration of refugees and migrants, the Bureau for Information and Services for Third-Country Nationals, as well as various issues related to the coordination and management of integration processes in the city. The participants discussed possibilities to track more effectively the integration itineraries of international status holders who have settled in the capital so that they can receive timely and necessary integration services, as well as to ensure that they will not become victims of crime. The meeting was also attended by the Ombudsperson of Sofia Municipality, the institution is key for ensuring equal access of refugees and migrants to public services and protection of their rights.
The meeting is part of the capacity building activities of local authorities in the field of integration, included in the project “Support for the development of integration policies and services for refugees in Sofia”, funded by UNHCR – Bulgaria.