Canton Bern is preparing various emergency shelters due to the growing influx of asylum-seekers from Ukraine and other countries. Individuals will be transferred to underground shelters so that space can be made above ground for families.
The government predicts that Bern will need to accommodate an additional 1,200 asylum-seekers in the coming months, Keystone-SDA reported citing authorities.
If the influx remains the same and the housing shortage tends to increase, the accommodation options will be exhausted by September or October. The emergency shelters are intended to help ensure that asylum and protection seekers can continue to be accommodated.
Currently, 42 shelters are in operation in Bern. Six of them are for people with status S, a one-year temporary residence permit granted only to Ukrainians, 22 for regular asylum-seekers and 14 for unaccompanied minors.
More
More
Foreign Affairs
Why asylum in Switzerland remains elusive for Afghan refugees
This content was published on
Despite the deteriorating human rights situation under the Taliban, the Swiss continue to resist calls to facilitate entry and protection for Afghans.
E-cars account for 10.5% of new registrations in the canton of Zug
This content was published on
Nowhere else in Switzerland are electric cars as popular as in Zug. Currently, 10.5 per cent of cars registered in the canton of Zug are purely electric, as new data from the online platform Energie Reporter and Energie Schweiz and Geoimpact show.
ETH climate researcher honoured with the German Environmental Award
This content was published on
Swiss climate researcher Sonia Isabelle Seneviratne from ETH Zurich receives the German Environmental Award 2025. She shares the prize, endowed with 500,000 euros, with the management duo of the steel galvanising company Zinq.
Police end attempted occupation of Zurich’s Platzspitz square
This content was published on
A large contingent of police prevented an attempted occupation of the Platzspitz area behind the National Museum in Zurich on Friday afternoon. They checked over 200 people and ordered them away. The group of occupiers cited anti-capitalist motives as the reason for the action.
Adoption reform for Swiss children conceived from donated sperm
This content was published on
Swiss government wants to make it easier for children conceived from donated sperm to be adopted by the partner of their legal parent.
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
Swiss asylum requests expected to remain high in 2023
This content was published on
The head of the State Secretariat for Migration says that the economic consequences of the Ukraine war are expected to keep asylum requests high.
Switzerland records 43% surge in asylum claims in first half of 2023
This content was published on
The number of asylum seekers have increased but this is not unexpected, says the Swiss State Secretariat for Migration (SEM).
This content was published on
Besides geography, politics and the solidarity of the population play a decisive role in determining which countries people flee to.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.