On 29 June 2018, the 28 EU member states agreed on how to finance an additional €3 billion for the EU Facility for Refugees in Turkey to support Syrian refugees.

Following the political agreement reached in the European Council, member states confirmed at the meeting of the Permanent Representatives Committee (Coreper) that €2 billion of this amount will be financed from the EU budget and the remaining €1 billion by contributions from the member states according to their share of the EU’s Gross National Income.

The facility has been providing assistance for refugees in Turkey in a number of fields, such as humanitarian aid, health care, education and socioeconomic support. The agreement on the second tranche of funding will ensure that projects in important areas, such as the education of child refugees, can continue without interruption when the contracts under the first tranche come to an end.

Compared to 2016, when the funding of the first tranche was decided, there is no longer such an urgent need to make a large amount of money available quickly. Member states therefore considered that commitments should again be spread over two years – 2018 and 2019 – but that the contracting period should be extended until 2020. This will ease the pressure on the annual EU budgets, which will fund a larger proportion of this second tranche than they did for the first.

Under this agreement, the facility for refugees will continue to be overseen by a steering committee bringing together representatives from the European Commission and the member states. Its task is to make sure that the projects are properly carried out for the benefit of refugees.

At the same time as agreeing on the launching of the second tranche of the Facility for Refugees in Turkey, EU leaders also agreed today that €500 million will be transferred from the 11th European Development Fund reserve to the EU Trust Fund for Africa. Member States are moreover called upon to make further contributions to replenish the EU Trust Fund for Africa. These additional funds should help address the needs of migrants and the root causes of migration.

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Press release