The European Court of Auditors (ECA) revealed that currently it is unable to quantify if any fund given to Turkey to help with the Syrian refugees’ crisis actually ended up helping that situation.
Auditors from ECA told reporters on Wednesday that they were unable to access data and information from Turkey’s education ministry. At least 530 million euros were destined to help with education projects for refugees’ integration, with salary for teachers, teaching materials and counseling. The auditors asked for data that showed which schools were actually receiving EU funding, how many refugee students they had and their grades. ECA member Bettina Jakobsen said that without the data, “we are not able to conclude on measuring impact or sustainability.”
According to The Associated Press, who spoke with one auditor, Turkish authorities told ECA that they simply didn’t have the data, despite joint and individual requests by ECA and the commission. The auditor noted that the date should exist but “it’s not up to us to guess why or why not they don’t want to provide the data.”
Despite this lack of information, auditors were granted access to some schools and hospitals that receive EU funding for refugees and noted that indeed they were used by refugees, with Turkish teachers working in the facilities. Overall, the auditors said that despite the lack of proper information, EU funding was providing relief for refugees and Turkish nationals.
The EU has signed several agreements with Turkey to provide help with the migrant crisis. A first agreement in 2016 saw Turkey receiving 6 billion euros to provide help with refugees, by giving cash cards and improve education and health facilities. A further 3 billion euros for similar prospect was agreed in 2021. The agreement was used as a blueprint for other deals the EU made with Tunisia and Egypt.
