The Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers (COA) wants to work towards more long-term and stable reception locations, instead of the much more expensive emergency reception places. An example location according to the COA is the asylum seekers’ center in Grave. For almost thirty years, a place where refugees can start their lives has been built there. One of the residents is Shady Qamar. He is happy that he can be of significance to others in the vegetable garden of the asylum seekers’ center. “It’s very satisfying,” he says.
Shady looks satisfied at the strawberry plants that are slowly producing their first fruits. He is from Syria and has been in Grave for about two and a half years now. “We grow all kinds of things here. When it’s ready, we deliver it to the asylum seekers’ center, but also to people in the neighborhood. It’s nice to be able to make a difference and to make people happy.”
The vegetable garden is one of the things at the asylum center in Grave that increases the quality of life for the residents. “A lot of things are organized,” says Els de Bruijn. She is a residential counselor and has been working at the asylum center for about 28 years. “We ensure quality of life at the location, maintain contacts and guide people. Really nice work.”
Since day one, Els has been more than happy to involve the neighborhood in the asylum seeker center. “We have many good contacts with people in the area. We have always involved them as much as possible. You can also see this in the many volunteers we now have.”
She also sees the differences between ‘her’ asylum center and emergency shelter locations in other places. “They are also working very hard to make it as livable as possible,” she says. “But it remains temporary.” According to her, a structural solution for people is better: “That is good for everyone, residents and the people in the neighborhood. And here we have succeeded. That is why we are a future center. It should actually be like that everywhere.”
In practice, these structural solutions prove difficult to achieve. Of the 321 COA locations, 205 are emergency shelters. “These places are less suitable than our permanent and regular locations,” says Joeri Kapteijns, director at COA. “Emergency care that just comes and goes causes a lot of unrest. That is understandable and we would like to get rid of it as quickly as possible.”
Kapteijns understands that local residents have questions and concerns when an asylum center comes near. “You need to seriously discuss this,” he says. But according to him, you also see that concerns often disappear once an asylum center is there: “Especially at locations where we can stay longer.”
Response of the Grave city center council
The Binnenstad Grave district council says that it is positive about the asylum seekers’ center, which has been there since 1997. “The trend is very positive. There are also people from the asylum seekers’ center working in the city center. We try to ensure that integration happens as best as possible.”
Some time ago there was a meeting with the COA and all the village councils in the village. It was about the renovation of an old school on the asylum seekers’ center site. “The COA will largely finance this. In exchange, the COA can stay longer at its current location. Everyone at that meeting was actually very positive. Everyone saw it as a win-win situation. Furthermore, we hear few negative voices in general.”
In September 2024, unrest broke out in the city. Since the beginning of that month, there have been several car burglaries, thefts and intimidations. “That was a certain group that caused a nuisance, but at the moment there is actually no more nuisance,” the district council said when asked.
The COA director calls Grave an example location. Residents not only stay there, but can build their future there. There are also facilities that are often missing in temporary emergency shelter, such as private rooms and the ability to cook yourself. There are also various activities on site: Shady’s vegetable garden, for example. “The most important thing is that this is a location that has been there for a long time. That has really become part of society. Exactly what we want,” Kapteijns emphasizes.
He sees Grave as the ‘asylum center of tomorrow’. A shelter that stays in one place for longer fits in with the environment and can possibly be given a different purpose later. “The location here gives a good idea of how asylum reception can be organized in a structural and stable manner.”
In the video, COA director Joeri Kapteijns explains why he sees the asylum seekers’ center in Grave as an example location:
