A total 45 refugees from Africa arrived in Italy on Thursday to study at 23 universities, thanks to an initiative involving the foreign ministry, the overseas aid department, the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR), charities including Caritas and local partners.
"The growth of this programme from six students during its pilot phase to 45 this year is an important achievement," said Chiara Cardoletti, UNHCR's representative for Italy, the Holy See and San Marino.
"Refugees need not only to rebuild their lives in safety and with dignity, but also to be able to best achieve their full potential in order to plan a bright future - for themselves and the communities that welcome them," Cardoletti added.
The 45 refugees are from Eritrea, Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo and will head to universities across Italy after their COVID-19 quarantine.
"We continue to repeat that humanitarian corridors are the only safe and legal way to fight human trafficking," tweeted Caritas, announcing the students' arrival.
The students have been awarded scholarships through the Unicore (University Corridors for Refugees) project. A total 28 universities are taking part in the project, which began in 2019 and has so far handed out over 78 scholarships.
The Unicore awards are based on academic merit and on motivation.
