site.btaDeputy PM Konstantinova: Ukrainian Refugee Accommodation Programme Available for Hotels From June

At the proposal of the national task force, a decision was adopted that allows the state accommodation facilities and those registered in the National Tourism Register to participate in the new humanitarian programme for the accommodation of people with temporary protection starting June 1, Good Governance Deputy Prime Minister Kalina Konstantinova said in a video, posted by the press service of the Council of Ministers.

Konstantinova said that after hundreds of calls and official letters, appeals and questions, dozens of reports and interviews with hotel owners, she is confident that the humanitarian programme for the accommodation of people with temporary protection has been "extraordinarily successful". According to her, the measure has not only provided shelter to tens of thousands of mothers and their children, but has also supported Bulgarian businesses, which were negatively impacted by the COVID-19 crisis. 

The new programme, developed by the Operational Coordination Group at the Council of Ministers, envisages BGN 15 per day per person for a night's stay and three meals, Konstantinova explained, which means that the programme is most suitable for lower category accommodation, such as family hotels and guest houses. According to an inquiry by the Tourism Ministry, the accommodation of this type amounts to 175,000 beds, she added. 

Registration in the programme is now available at the national telephone line - 02 905 5555.

Interviewers are already testing the online platform for data collection from refugees. Information will be published on the government online portal https://ukraine.gov.bg./ once the platform becomes available. Thus, people under temporary protection will be able to fill in their information on their own.