Voluntary returns

Since 2006, the Danish Refugee Council (DRC) has implemented a return programme for rejected asylum seekers from Kosovo. A qualitative survey was carried out of the impact of the assistance provided by the DRC in 2007 and the Bavarian Refugee Council, Bayerischer Flüchtlingsrat, conducted a field study of returnees from Germany to Kosovo in August 2007.

The report describes the lessons that the DRC has learned from its experiences. It makes a series of recommendations for best-practice based upon its experiences, the surveys of returnees from Denmark and Germany, and its discussions with a range of stakeholders in Kosovo and western Europe. The recommendations relate to information, legal counselling, preparation, reintegration support, housing, income generation, education, health provision, reconciliation, monitoring, follow up and coordination. It concludes that there is not an easy or inexpensive way to achieve sustainable return and advocates for a process which ensures that the relevant preconditions for sustainability are in place.