Despite government pressure, mayor Damien Carême of France's Grand-Synthe, Europe's "worst refugee camp," decided to build temporary housing for refugees.
Grand-Synthe is a suburb of Dunkirk, a port town which, like Calais, is a transit point for migrants hoping to reach Britain. To pay for the improved camp, which the national government refused to fund, Carême has decided to tuen to online crowdfunding.
"If we cannot [attract government funding], and the situation continues, I will in the meanwhile start a campaign to collect donations on the Internet to attract the attention of the general public and collect money," Carême told Sputnik.
He added that the town and the government were working together on stopping traffickers from moving people to Britain, and that the next step was to provide decent conditions for people in the camp.
