The students, 20 women and 45 men who had been living in Kenya, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe, will spend the next two years studying for a bachelor degree.

The program followed a public tender process conducted in March this year, and students were selected according to an assessment of both merit and motivation.

UNHCR has been running the UNICORE program for the past six years. In that time, 250 refugee students have received scholarships to study at the 40 participating Italian universities.

The program enables refugee students to come to Italy in a legal and safe way, and to continue their studies, without having to venture on dangerous trips in the hands of smugglers.

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'Dramatic' lack of educational opportunities for refugees

More than 75 percent of refugees worldwide live in developing countries, with little or no access to education. Globally, only seven percent of refugees have access to tertiary education, compared with 42 percent of the non-refugee population.

"Due to the dramatic situation, it is even more evident how programs such as UNICORE are important, allowing refugees to learn, prosper, and develop their potential," said Chiara Cardoletti, UNHCR representative for Italy, the Holy Sea and the Republic of San Marino.

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Partners in the UNICORE project include the Italian foreign ministry, Italian Caritas, the Valdese Diocese, the Astalli Center, the Jesuit Refugee Center, the Ethical Finance Foundation, the Gandhi Charity and Consortio Communi-tas.

The UNICORE partnership this year is further enriched by the association Miles4Migrants, which guaranteed flights for the students who arrived in Italy, and with Campus X, which will lodge some of the students in its facilities.