The greatest challenge is the issue of effective and speedy integration because the majority of people waiting at the Croatian border want to enter or transit through Croatia, heard the conference organised by the Jesuit Refugee Service on the occasion of World Refugee Day.
State Secretary for European and International Affairs in the Interior Ministry, Terezija Gras, said that Croatia is endeavouring to develop an integration system for people who are legally coming to Croatia.
Gras underscored that it is essential to consider alternative options to resolve the issue of illegal migrants whose numbers are increasing.
That means that it might be necessary to relieve the asylum seeking system and investigate whether there is a way to allow these people some form of temporary residence and a working permit, which they won't have to wait long for and which will enable them to be integrated better and faster, she said.
Croatia recorded the most applications for international protection in 2016 - 2,233. Last year there were 1,883 applications and this year about 500. The most applications were approved last year, 250 in all.
More than 75% of the people submitting applications, leave Croatia before the process is finalised which is the reason for the disproportion of applications and those approved, Gras explained.
With regard to accommodation capacities, there is room for 100 people in the migrant reception centre in Kutina and 600 in the Porin Hotel in Zagreb.
Gras said that this year, work was being done to improve conditions in the Porin Hotel and at the same time a new reception centre is being built in Mala Gorica, about 50 kilometres southeast of Zagreb.