The two migrant hosting centers built by Italy in Albania are ready to operate as of today, Italy's Ambassador to Tirana Fabrizio Bucci said Friday (October 11).

"The two migrant hosting centers, built by Italy in Albania, are operational starting today and we are ready to host the first" arrivals, Ambassador Bucci said during a visit to the center with reporters in Shengjin.

They had been slated to open on May 20 but several issues arose during the creation of the Gjader site. The Gjader area was handed over to the Italian interior ministry only on October 9 after complex works had been carried out.

On Saturday, Italy's Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi said they were planning on getting going "from next week." However, he added that he actually hoped that wouldn't be the case, "because that would mean we don't actually need to be processing anyone in these centers. Everything depends on activities in the Mediterranean and on what the traffickers decide to do," concluded Piantedosi.

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Hotspot in Shengjin port prior to transfer to Gjader

The facilities will be able to host occupants for the purpose of accelerated border procedures. The migrants hosted will be exclusively male, not deemed in a vulnerable condition, and from countries considered safe.

The aim is to repatriate migrants more quickly if --after an examination of their asylum claims-- they are found not to meet the relevant requirements.

A hotspot has been set up at the Shengjin port for identification procedures for migrants rescued at sea by Italian vessels. After these procedures are completed, the individuals will be transferred to Gjader, about 20 kilometers away from the port.

Three facilities inside the Gjader center

Three separate facilities have been set up in Gjader: a center for hosting asylum seekers (with a capacity of 880), a center for hosting those slated for repatriation ( with a capacity of 144), and a penitentiary (with a capacity of 20) for those who commit crimes inside the facility.

The area of Gjader, which was made available by the Albanian government, was previously a site used by the Albanian air force, but had fallen into disuse and was badly in need of work. Italian military engineers were involved in the works over several months to render the site suitable, with the activation of plumbing and sewage systems.

There are barrier walls, surveillance cameras along the perimeter and a security system inside, which will be under Italian jurisdiction. Italian police will be tasked with ensuring law and order.

UNHCR personnel will be on site as well to monitor respect for the migrants' rights.

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Asylum claims and holding orders via video with Rome

The aim is to process asylum claims within four weeks. Hearings for orders to detain the migrants will be done via video calls with the Rome court. This is one of the more problematic parts of the Albania project, since thus far Italian magistrates have upheld such orders only in a very small percentage of the orders issued by the police commissioner.

The Italian government is nonetheless optimistic about this unique experiment: processing asylum claims under Italian jurisdiction but in a third country.

Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi spoke on this to his counterparts at the G7 meeting in Italy earlier this month, saying that "in Europe 15 countries have already asked the (European) Commission to look carefully at the Italian model, which is different from the British one in Rwanda. It will now be carefully assessed by the new European Commission."

The objective, proponents say, has always been that of deterrence. According to this idea, migrants will be less likely to start the journey if they know that they may end up in Albania and not Italy. Piantedosi said there would be no opening ceremony for the centers as they would be run upon the lines of processing centers already in Italy.

He said that he hoped that once the message got through to migrants that their claims would be heard in a short time and any rejected asylum seekers would be returned home, the system would act as an effective deterrant and fewer migrants would try and cross the Mediterranean towards Italy in the future.