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EU commissioner holds migration talks with Greek officials

The European Union’s home affairs commissioner was meeting Tuesday with Greece’s prime minister and foreign minister, a day after touring two of the eastern islands in the Aegean Sea most heavily affected by migration into Europe.
The EU is currently working on a new migration pact to tackle the issue of asylum-seekers wanting to enter the bloc. Refugee rights groups have slammed the bloc’s migration policies as inhumane.
The continent’s southern countries, which have become a main entry point for migrants, have long called for a more equitable distribution of asylum-seekers and more solidarity from other EU countries. Greece, Italy, Spain, Malta and Cyprus have formed a group to lobby for changes to that effect in the new migration pact.
The EU commissioner, Ylva Johansson, will also to meet again with Greek Migration Minister Notis Mitarachi, with whom she had visited the islands of Lesbos and Samos on Monday.
The commissioner had stressed the need for solidarity among the EU’s 27 member states in handling migration, and called on Turkey to resume accepting the return of people whose asylum applications are rejected in Greece after arriving from the Turkish coast.
Speaking after meeting with Johansson on Tuesday, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis noted the massive overcrowding in island camps had significantly eased over the past year.
“We have made significant progress in the decongestion of the islands. We are moving forward with the EU’s help, with the construction of permanent facilities on the islands, which will mark a decisive change in relation to what was happening in the past,” he said.
The notoriously overcrowded and squalid camp of Moria on Lesbos burned down last year, and its residents have been moved into a temporary camp of tents set up on a former military firing range. The camp has been plagued by problems of flooding, which Mitarachi said were being dealt with.
On Monday, Johansson had noted that the number of asylum-seekers on the Greek islands had dropped from 42,000 in 2019 to about 14,000 currently. Still, the facility in Samos, constructed to house just under 650 people, remains grossly overcrowded, with more than 3,000 people living in the camp and a shantytown that has emerged around it.
A new facility is being constructed on Samos and others are slated for some of the other islands. Johansson said Monday the EU was providing 276 million euros ($325 million) for the construction of new migrant facilities.
Aid groups and refugee rights organizations, however, have slammed Europe’s migration policies.
A 2016 EU-Turkey deal stipulates new arrivals must remain on the islands pending return to Turkey unless their asylum application is successful. The agreement reduced arrivals, but didn’t stop them, leading to massively overcrowded island camps.
In an open letter to Johansson on Monday, medical aid group Doctors Without Borders, or MSF, accused Johansson of putting a “positive spin on what is in reality a disastrous situation” and said the EU was planning “to implement the same policies that have created only suffering for the past five years since the EU-Turkey deal.”
MSF’s medical coordinator for Lesbos, Hilde Vochten, wrote that asylum-seekers had been trapped on islands during “five winters that have led to destitution, traumatization, and even to the death of people trapped in EU-funded reception centers.”
Detailing miserable living conditions in the island camps, Vochten wrote that “none of this is an unintended consequence nor an issue of lack of capacity or resources: the conditions on the Greek Islands are supposed to be a deterrent to those still thinking of attempting the journey.”
source: The Associated Press
Image source: Reuters
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BENEFIT AGM approves 10%...
- March 27, 2025
BENEFIT, the Kingdom’s innovator and leading company in Fintech and electronic financial transactions service, held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) at the company’s headquarters in the Seef District.
During the meeting, shareholders approved all items listed on the agenda, including the ratification of the minutes of the previous AGM held on 26 March 2024. The session reviewed and approved the Board’s Annual Report on the company’s activities and financial performance for the fiscal year ended 31 December 2024, and the shareholders expressed their satisfaction with the company’s operational and financial results during the reporting period.
The meeting also reviewed the Independent External Auditor’s Report on the company’s consolidated financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2024. Subsequently, the shareholders approved the audited financial statements for the fiscal year. Based on the Board’s recommendation, the shareholders approved the distribution of a cash dividend equivalent to 10% of the paid-up share capital.
Furthermore, the shareholders endorsed the allocation of a total amount of BD 172,500 as remuneration to the members of the Board for the year ended 31 December 2024, subject to prior clearance by related authorities.
The extension of the current composition of the Board was approved, which includes ten members and one CBB observer, for a further six-month term, expiring in September 2025, pending no objection from the CBB.
The meeting reviewed and approved the Corporate Governance Report for 2024, which affirmed the company’s full compliance with the corporate governance directives issued by the CBB and other applicable regulatory frameworks. The AGM absolved the Board Members of liability for any of their actions during the year ending on 31st December 2024, in accordance with the Commercial Companies Law.
In alignment with regulatory requirements, the session approved the reappointment of Ernst & Young (EY) as the company’s External Auditors for the fiscal year 2025, covering both the parent company and its subsidiaries—Sinnad and Bahrain FinTech Bay. The Board was authorised to determine the external auditors’ professional fees, subject to approval from the CBB, and the meeting concluded with a discussion of any additional issues as per Article (207) of the Commercial Companies Law.
Speaking on the company’s performance, Mr. Mohamed Al Bastaki, Chairman BENEFIT , stated: “In terms of the financial results for 2024, I am pleased to say that the year gone by has also been proved to be a success in delivering tangible results. Growth rate for 2024 was 19 per cent. Revenue for the year was BD 17 M (US$ 45.3 Million) and net profit was 2 Million ($ 5.3 Million).
Mr. Al Bastaki also announced that the Board had formally adopted a new three-year strategic roadmap to commence in 2025. The strategy encompasses a phased international expansion, optimisation of internal operations, enhanced revenue diversification, long-term sustainability initiatives, and the advancement of innovation and digital transformation initiatives across all service lines.
“I extend my sincere appreciation to the CBB for its continued support of BENEFIT and its pivotal role in fostering a stable and progressive regulatory environment for the Kingdom’s banking and financial sector—an environment that has significantly reinforced Bahrain’s standing as a leading financial hub in the region,” said Mr. Al Bastaki. “I would also like to thank our partner banks and valued customers for their trust, and our shareholders for their ongoing encouragement. The achievements of 2024 set a strong precedent, and I am confident they will serve as a foundation for yet another successful and impactful year ahead.”
Chief Executive of BENEFIT; Mr. Abdulwahed AlJanahi commented, “The year 2024 represented another pivotal chapter in BENEFIT ’s evolution. We achieved substantial progress in advancing our digital strategy across multiple sectors, while reinforcing our long-term commitment to the development of Bahrain’s financial services and payments landscape. Throughout the year, we remained firmly aligned with our objective of delivering measurable value to our shareholders, strategic partners, and customers. At the same time, we continued to play an active role in enabling Bahrain’s digital economy by introducing innovative solutions and service enhancements that directly address market needs and future opportunities.”
Mr. AlJanahi affirmed that BENEFIT has successfully developed a robust and well-integrated payment network that connects individuals and businesses across Bahrain, accelerating the adoption of emerging technologies in the banking and financial services sector and reinforcing Bahrain’s position as a growing fintech hub, and added, “Our achievements of the past year reflect a long-term vision to establish a resilient electronic payment infrastructure that supports the Kingdom’s digital economy. Key developments in 2024 included the implementation of central authentication for open banking via BENEFIT Pay”
Mr. AlJanahi concluded by thanking the Board for its strategic direction, the company’s staff for their continued dedication, and the Central Bank of Bahrain, member banks, and shareholders for their valuable partnership and confidence in the company’s long-term vision.
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