At a press conference on Friday, the government announced it now expects over 100,000 Ukrainians to arrive in Denmark – well above the previously anticipated figure of 20,000.
And as many are expected to be children, the Danish school system can expect a significant influx of new students across the country.
The education minister, Pernille Rosenkrantz-Theil, said the majority of the kids will initially be placed in introductory classes at schools, and she called on retired teachers to lend a hand.
“We encourage retired teachers and teacher students to help as much as possible in their local communities,” said Rosenkrantz-Theil.
The minister also urged individuals with a pedagogic background to assist – including part-timer workers going full-time.
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Over 24,000 already
Previously, when it assessed that around 20,000 refugees would come to Denmark, the government calculated that the expense of taking in the refugees would land at around 2 billion kroner in 2022 and 2023.
But it has yet to unveil by how much that figure would increase should 100,000 refugees arrive.
According to the immigration minister, Mattias Tesfaye, over 24,000 Ukrainian refugees – half of whom are children – have made an appointment with citizen services (Borgerservice) to gain residence permits.
In comparison, Denmark received around 20,000 Syrian refugees in connection with the 2015 Refugee Crisis.
Some 3.6 million people have fled Ukraine since Russia invaded the country about a month ago.
