The Piran-based Euro-Mediterranean University (EMUNI) enrolled two Syrian refugees this academic year in a pilot initiative for refugee students. Next year, they plan to open their master courses to students from North Africa and the Middle East and help them come to Slovenia legally.

EMUNI president Rado Bohinc told the Slovenian Press Agency that they opened special units in Morocco, Egypt, Tunisia, Lebanon and Algeria to offer support to potential students in obtaining visas and solving any logistical problems.

"We would like to create a legal path for young people from this region to come to study in the European Union," Bohinc said at a press conference on 17 March. The Slovenian Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education will soon discuss the study programmes to be offered to potential students.

The first two Syrian students came to EMUNI from Turkey.

The financial aspect of the project will be discussed by the ministers of the group of Mediterranean countries at a conference in April. "We want to set up a financial support mechanism for students from deprived areas, and thus make it financially possible for them to study in the EU and at EMUNI."

The financial mechanism would be coordinated by the ministers of the nine North Mediterranean countries, each of which would invest some financial resources, which would be intended for students from the southern Mediterranean countries, including deprived areas.

"Another source is our own scholarship fund that we have set up, where we invite business corporations operating on the southern shores of the Mediterranean to invest in this fund and thus attract students who will learn about the European cultural environment through their studies and who may be very suitable for their business links in the future," Bohinc said.

This is why the university has given up part of the funding it receives through the Higher Education Ministry. This part of the funding will be offered through Ad Futura, a national scholarship fund.

EMUNI has already drawn up a policy setting out the criteria for tuition fees, as they can be partly subsidised for social reasons or due to the refugee status.

Nicole Epting, a representative of the UNHCR Central Europe, said the pilot project was an good example of how commitments can be turned into actions.

Slovenia plays a key role in this global movement, she said, pointing to the world refugee forum two years ago, where Slovenia offered six concrete commitments, including a pledge to resettle 50 refugees from Turkey and to expand safe and legal channels for refugees globally.

"A key focus of Slovenia's commitment is on some of the most vulnerable refugee groups, including single mothers, Afghan women and unaccompanied minors - people who often face extreme risks of displacement and have limited opportunities for a legal pathway," she added.

A project of the Union for the Mediterranean, EMUNI was founded in 2008 with a seat in Piran, which is where most of its activities take place. Its network spans more than 130 universities from over 30 Euro-Mediterranean countries.