After May 31, Ukrainian refugees who fail to find work and pay for their own accommodation will be accommodated in municipal or state bases.

The program, which pays BGN 40 per person accommodated in a hotel, expires at the end of next month, as recorded in the decision of the Council of Ministers, which was adopted. So far, the government has inspected more than 250 municipal and state bases, and 15,000 beds will be provided.

A few days ago, the municipal council in Plovdiv voted to turn the abandoned building of the former Lung Hospital in Plovdiv into a center for accommodation of Ukrainian refugees. The term of the Center will be until the termination of the temporary protection or until the end of 2022, the advisers agreed.

To date, 201,904 Ukrainian citizens have entered Bulgaria since the beginning of the war. 93,498 people remained in Bulgaria, of which 35,000 were children, and 51,291 people were accommodated on state support. 84,300 Ukrainian citizens have temporary protection status.

"Bulgaria will continue to care for all innocent people fleeing the terrible war in Ukraine as long as they need our help. We will give them as much time as they need to feel calm and secure, and we will continue to we provide all the support we are capable of, not only as a state but also as a people", declared yesterday the Deputy Prime Minister Kalina Konstantinova.

"From the very beginning, we have announced that the humanitarian program for hotel accommodation will continue until the beginning of the active summer season - May 31. The decision to accommodate displaced persons from Ukraine in hotels is not only a great example of successful public-private partnership but also a measure, which was extremely supportive of the hotel industry after the blow they suffered from the covid crisis. In practice, the season started for them in March, and the payment of the first tranche of BGN 11,075,446.40 with VAT to hotels started yesterday, "she wrote on her Facebook page.

"Once we have accommodated those fleeing the war in Ukraine in safe and comfortable places, we are focused on the next task - to provide them with access to the labor market, before opening new opportunities for permanent accommodation and full-time care for their children. Research shows that over 70% of Ukrainians want to start work immediately and over 60% of them are university graduates. We are actively working to find the best way and to create the best conditions to encourage employers and tenants to cooperate in solving of this difficult but extremely important task.

People who have sought temporary protection do not in any way want to be a burden to the state and our society. All they want is to return home.

And until this becomes possible, it is my duty, it is our duty, to take care of them in the way we would like someone to take care of us," Konstantinova wrote.

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