A cornerstone was laid on Thursday at the Lipa migrant camp near Bihac, northern Bosnia, for new facilities intended for the most vulnerable categories of migrants who will be staying there, and Pope Francis supported the project with a donation.

Attending the ceremony at which the cornerstone was laid for two multi-purpose halls, to be used as mess halls by migrant families with small children, were Apostolic Nuncio to Bosnia Luigi Pezzuto and representatives of local and state authorities.

The Lipa location has been chosen for the accommodation of migrant families with children after the Hotel Sedra near Bihac, where they used to stay, was shut down on Wednesday.

A migrant reception centre is currently being built in Lipa, a village some 20 kilometres from Bihac, and it is expected to cater for 1,500 migrants.

Last winter a makeshift tent settlement was established there and numerous migrants were transferred to the settlement after authorities in Bihac decided to shut down the Miral and Bira camps in the city.

The construction of more permanent structures at the Lipa camp has been supported by the Banja Luka Diocesan Caritas charity and the Caritas charity chapters from Italy.

With his visit to the Lipa camp on Thursday, Nuncio Pezzuto wished to confirm care for the conditions in the camp because the Holy See strongly supports efforts to establish more humane conditions for the stay of migrants at that camp.

Pope Francis has contributed directly with a personal donation for the construction of new facilities, including for sections where migrants can socialise, in migrant camps near Sarajevo.