Illicit financial flows (FFI) from migrant smuggling from West Africa to Europe are estimated at more than $100 million per year, or 59,250,000,000 CFA francs, according to a report published by the Institute for Security Studies (ISS), this Friday, July 28, 2023.
“Moderate estimates of human smuggling from West Africa to Europe alone exceed $100 million,” the study, “Illicit financial flows from migrant smuggling: Trends and responses in West Africa,” said.
“In 2020, migration data showed an increase in migrant crossings from Senegal to the Canary Islands by about 1,000% compared to the 2011-2019 period,” the report notes.
With regard to Senegal, the seaway is the most popular with smugglers, the authors of the report stress. “Smugglers are using the maritime routes from Senegal to the Spanish Canary Islands as a gateway to Europe because of increasing restrictions on the Mediterranean route,” says the document.
According to the authors of this report, coastal towns like Saint Louis and Mbour are the main departure points for the Canary Islands ‘of irregular migrants [who] also leave certain fishing villages, such as Joal, Thiaroye and Soumbedioune.”
They also note the presence of candidates for irregular migration from other West African countries, to whom smugglers “generally require full payment in advance (…) between $400 and $600.”
However, the report says, “in 2023, the use of maritime routes appears to have decreased, suggesting that COVID-19 restrictions on land borders played a role in the increased use of maritime routes between 2020 and 2022.”
On a global scale, migrant smuggling brings smugglers more than 10 billion dollars per year, or 5 925 000 000 000 CFA francs, according to estimates by the rappor
