The Ministry of the Interior has awarded, on an emergency basis, the construction of modules in the mobile Temporary Foreigner Assistance Center (CATE) of Arrecife, in Lanzarote, which is located in front of the National Police station. The same award will also include the renovation of the one in El Hierro.
The goal is to transform the tents installed three years ago in the capital of Lanzarote on unpaved land into modular structures.
In a negotiated procedure without publicity, the Government of Spain seeks to respond to the deficiencies of this space, where agents register and assist migrants arriving in boats within a maximum period of 72 hours.
The contract exceeds 2.4 million euros and has been awarded to the SME Mediohabit SL, with tax headquarters in the municipality of Mula (Murcia).
The Report of the Prosecutor's Office of the Autonomous Community of the Canary Islands already warned in 2024 that this center "does not meet the necessary conditions for the initial reception" of people arriving on the island in precarious boats. The Public Prosecutor's Office stated at the time that the space suffered from an "already endemic provisionality", since it was created for temporary use in 2022 and routinely exceeded its maximum capacity.
Through the General Subdirectorate of Planning and Management of Infrastructure and Resources for Security, the Interior Ministry has awarded this rehabilitation in an exceptional extraordinary procedure, relying on the fact that standard contracting mechanisms "do not allow a response to the situation with the required speed."
