Cabildo and town councils agree to create a network of small centers for migrant minors in Lanzarote

The Cabildo de Lanzarote and the seven town councils of the island have agreed to create a network of centers with few places, no more than 25, to welcome unaccompanied migrant minors in the different municipalities to achieve "a change of model" that allows "better integration."

This was explained this Monday to EFE by the Councilor for Social Welfare and Seniors of the Cabildo de Lanzarote, Marci Acuña, after holding the second meeting of the Institutional Board of Social Action and Seniors of the island, in which the "challenge" of assisting migrant minors who arrive on the coasts of Lanzarote in search of a better future was addressed.

In that sense, the island government has opted to avoid "macro-centers" such as the La Santa shelter, which has been operating for five years, and direct care for these minors to small supervised centers, something that the municipalities of the island seem to agree on.

"The educational and integration project for minors is more successful with smaller centers, with more personal and individualized treatment for them," Acuña defended.

In this way, a reception resource is already operating in Arrecife, with capacity for 40 places, and another in Yaiza, which serves about twenty minors, and it is hoped that they can soon be extended to other municipalities to accommodate the 200-250 children that Acuña understands is the ideal number for a territory like Lanzarote to carry out effective integration.

And it is that this migratory phenomenon, which he has acknowledged that they are not "unaware" of because they have already experienced it before, has led to the arrival of some 800 migrant minors to the island last year, according to data provided by the councilor himself, most of whom moved to other islands.

"This year, the saturation in the devices in the Canary Islands is enormous (...). In Lanzarote, this situation that we were having of frequent transfers to other islands, has to be complemented with the opening of new devices on the island," Acuña clarified.

And that is why this institutional table has informed the municipal representatives of this intention of the Cabildo, which is already working in coordination with the Government of the Canary Islands to establish the places where these centers will operate.

Asked about the type of property that would be made available to the children, the councilor detailed that they have left "open" the possibility that they be spaces ceded by the different administrations but that, if it is not possible, properties would be rented to be able to use them as homes, as has been done in most devices so far.

"We didn't want to do it without the town councils being fully aware of the project and how we understand that these minors should be cared for," he concluded. EFE