Shelter for convalescent migrants

The project

The program has been operative since 2001. Initially, it was the Government of Murcia who initiated the action and within time and due to the increased demand, the Government decided to delegate the program to the NGO sector, more precisely to the NGO Murcia Acoge and Caritas. At the beginning, Murcia Acoge was in charge of attending only men and Caritas only women. Within time, Murcia Acoge took over the care of both, men and women adult migrants.  

Nowadays, Murcia Acoge is running several housing facilities whose aim is to provide housing and healthcare to adult migrant men and women, regardless of their administrative status who are suffering from a temporary illness and who cannot afford to pay rent or cover their housing expenses, nor have a family or lack reliable social networks in the Region of Murcia. The beneficiaries are mainly migrant workers, but other profiles of migrants (non-workers) can also benefit from the program. 

The program has two main goals: to provide decent housing during their recovery and to provide proper care during their stay in the accommodation. 

The impact of the good practice

The program has a positive impact on migrants with temporary illnesses who don’t have family, relatives or social network nearly and cannot afford to pay rent or the expenses associated with maintaining a household. In that regard, the program brings not only temporary shelter but also medical care, labor counselling and training programs in order to facilitate the integration of migrants in the host society.