Sweden prepares for more asylum seekers
According to the statistics of Migrationsverket (the Swedish Migration Board), 16,317 asylum seekers came to Sweden from Syria last year. In total, 54,259 asylum seekers arrived in Sweden in 2013, with the majority of them coming from Syria. What does this mean for Sweden?

Education
For the Swedish schools, it means many new students are coming. Skolverket (the Swedish National Agency for Education) and the Swedish municipalities and city councils have begun a collaboration to support the schools. Those schools that are used to receiving asylum seekers are to help those that are not. ”There may be huge practical problems for a school that has no experience with newly arrived students. Everyone would do well to prepare,” says Anna Ekström, general director at the Swedish National Agency for Education.

Health care
For the Swedish health care system, preparation is also key. Even if a person comes out of a war without physical harm, he or she may still have problems that are difficult to treat. According to the Red Cross, a third of the Syrians coming to Sweden suffer from post-traumatic stress, which leads to more pressure on Sweden’s psychiatric wards. And many municipalities and health care facilities have sounded the alarm that they are lacking resources. ”Here in Malmö the clinics are down on their knees,” said Barbro O’Connor from the Red Cross.

Housing
The lack of accommodation is another problem once the asylum seekers leave the Migration Board’s detention and move into Swedish municipalities. According to new statistics from the Migration Board, 9,638 people with residence permits are waiting for accommodations, which has led to conflict between some municipalities and the Swedish state. In daily Expressen, several local councilors asked to receive fewer asylum seekers.

Employment
Refugees are to receive individualized help to work and education through the two-year establishment program at Arbetsförmedligen (the Swedish Public Employment Service). In 2013, 17,200 people were registered into the establishment assignment, and of them 7,700 (45 percent) came from Syria. According to Arbetsförmedlingen, 25 percent continue to work or study after two years, but an investigation by daily DN shows that only 5 percent of them get work without some form of employment support.

Unaccompanied minors
Many municipalities have been reluctant to receive minors without relatives in Sweden. New rules will make it possible for the Migration Board to still place these children in communities that do not have a voluntary agreement. Östra Göinge received two children and then said no to receiving more. Therefore, that municipality has been reported to the Inspektionen för vård och omsorg (the Health and Social Care Inspectorate) by Mölndal, the municipality where the denied children currently live.