The number of asylum requests in the first quarter of 2012 was slightly down on the last quarter of 2011, but were nevertheless up 63.6 per cent on the same period in 2011.
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The number of applications spiked in January, at a record 2,653 (four per cent more than December), but decreased over the next two months, according to the Federal Migration Office on Monday.
A total of 7,150 asylum requests were received in first three months, 1.3 per cent down on the last quarter of 2011. In the first quarter of 2011 it was 4,371.
The largest number of requests were made by Eritreans (1,151), followed by Nigerians (677), Tunisians (664) and Serbians (658).
The number of officially monitored departures of asylum seekers was up 67 per cent in comparison with the same period last year.
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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.