How do local authorities and humanitarian agencies collaborate when refugees are in transit? An IIED-supported research project is looking at the transit refugee response in Croatia.
The conflict in Syria has led to massive population displacement since the outbreak of violence in 2011. In the summer of 2015, a migration route from Syria through South Eastern Europe opened up, with some 650,000 migrants and refugees passing through Croatia from September 2015 to January 2016.
An IIED-supported research project has been looking at how local authorities and humanitarian agencies in Croatia responded to this influx of people.
A centrally organised government response, including a free train service through newly established transit centres such as in Slavonski Brod, the largest and longest functioning centre, helped to manage the large flows of refugees.
Such train services provided a rapid and effective passageway to Western Europe, and the response led to innovative approaches to delivering humanitarian assistance and protecting human rights under tight time constraints.