Nearly 30,000 sought asylum in Netherlands last year

Last year 29,790 people sought asylum in the Netherlands last year, compared to 16,477 asylum seekers in 2013. This is the largest number of asylum seekers looking for help in the Netherlands in a decade. This is according to the annual report by the Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers (COA) which was published on Thursday, NU reports. Almost half of the nearly 30 thousand asylum seekers came from Syria. The number of Eritrean asylum seekers also increased. The capacity to accommodate asylum seekers had to be significantly extended last year due to the massive influx. Disused asylum centers were reopened again and new ones were opened. A total of 20,282 asylum seekers were granted residence permits in 2014 and were able to leave the centers for a home. In 2013 that number was 15,520.