Minimum Standards for the Reception and Protection of Asylum Seekers in Estonia (MINAS)

The MINAS project started in 2006. The main goal of the project was to improve the capacity of the Estonian asylum system to ensure a well-functioning, fast and high-quality asylum procedure both in normal situations and in the event of a sharp increase in the number of refugees. To this end, most of the project's activities were aimed at Police and Border Guard Board, but also at the Ministry of Social Affairs and the Ministry of the Interior.

With the launch of the MINAS project in 2006, support began for the development of an Emergency Plan for Mass Immigration (HOLP). In 2007, the first MINAS-2 headquarters exercise took place, testing for the first time the emergency plan for the mass influx of refugees, inter-agency co-operation, the adequacy of the relevant legal basis and the level of training of specialists. MINAS-3 focused primarily on the theoretical preparation of officials, and in 2010, testing of HOLP in a simulation environment continued under MINAS 4.

In the framework of the MINAS-5 project, the Field Exercise “Cooperation in Solving the Crisis Situation Arising from Mass Immigration” was conducted in 2011. The field exercise tested the co-operation and readiness of different agencies to respond to the situation caused by the mass immigration of asylum seekers or the sharp increase in the number of asylum seekers. In addition to the experience, the outcome of the exercise was the Evaluation Report, which set out proposals for improving the handling of mass immigration of refugees at the border crossing point, in the asylum procedure at the external border and in the country, and in providing accommodation and other services to refugees. In addition, the exercise and its evaluation report provided important input on emergency response plans and various pieces of legislation (eg the Aliens International Protection Act and its implementing acts).

In addition, activities supporting the reception of unaccompanied minors and the integration of persons granted international protection in Estonia were started within the framework of the MINAS project, which were continued within the framework of the CAP-CO project.

The project was co-financed by the European Union through the European Refugee Fund and the Ministry of the Interior of the Republic of Estonia.