00:00Welcome to Shenzhen, about an hour north of Tirana in Albania.
00:10As you can see, it's a bustling tourism destination, but a couple of years ago, it also became
00:15home to several hundred Afghan refugees after the Taliban took back power in Afghanistan.
00:20Today, many still remain and are calling it home, but it has made headlines for another
00:25kind of migrant recently.
00:27At the end of 2023, the Albanian government and the Italian government signed an agreement
00:32that would see migrants found by the Italian authorities processed in Albania.
00:39Between here, the port and Jadra, there will be a capacity of 3,000 people.
00:44They will arrive here first, they will have their details taken, they'll then be transferred
00:48to Jadra.
00:49Both centers are closed.
00:51That means no one can go in and no one can go out.
00:53They will be guarded and secured internally by the Italian authorities, as they're technically
00:58Italian soil.
00:59Externally, the perimeter will be patrolled by Albanian authorities.
01:03When they are at the centers, they will be provided with health care, legal assistance,
01:08and of course, basic necessities, food and toiletries.
01:11Everything is funded by the Italian government.
01:14Today, I have been given exclusive information from a senior official who has said that this
01:21center behind me will be ready to accept people as of the 15th of August, meaning the
01:26initial deadline of the 1st of August will be missed.
01:29So there will be a capacity of 1,000 people who will be welcomed.
01:33Meanwhile, work is continuing on Jadra.
01:36They confirmed to me that both centers will be fully operational at full capacity by the
01:41start of September.
01:45So as for what local people think about these two centers, it's true there have been protests
01:49in Tirana and Lesia, and there are people who are against them.
01:53But I spend a lot of time in this area.
01:55I live locally here for half of the year, and I've spoken to a lot of local people.
02:00And honestly, they're not really that bothered about it.
02:03They understand the centers will be closed, and they're not particularly worried about
02:06any negative impact on tourism or the local economy.
02:09They've had experience with Afghans coming to live here, who've integrated, who are now
02:14part of the community.
02:15They're not really that bothered.
02:17And also, they're not very keen to talk to the media for a wide range of reasons.
02:21But overall, people are not too concerned, and they're hopeful that perhaps investment
02:25from the Italian government might improve some infrastructure, such as electric and
02:29roads in the local area.
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