IMMIGRATION

[ IMMIGRATION ] – More than 2000 migrants lost their lives at sea 2021

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3 years .

14/07/2021 à 08:48

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The figure is chilling. 2087 is the exact number of migrants who died at sea in an attempt to return to Spain. Spanish NGO Caminando made the announcement on Tuesday 6 July in a report on the migration situation in 2021. A number that must scare the political authorities because it is five times higher than the number of victims counted in the same period in 2020.

Spanish NGO Caminando has released the 2021 report on illegal emigration to Spain. On Tuesday, July 6, according to Helena Maleno, spokesperson of the NGO, in the first six months of the current year, 1922 migrants died in boats on the maritime route between Morocco and Spain. “In the first six months of this year, we almost got to last year’s figures and that’s really amazing!” , she told RFI by telephone.

That is why, according to her, measures should begin to be taken to put an end to this situation, a real headache for public authorities in Africa. This necessarily requires close collaboration between the Spanish government and African countries with, in the first instance, Morocco, the departure zone for most migrants. “We alerted the Spanish government. They were told to find ways to stop this whole situation. We need to improve the rescue services that are there, but we also need to improve coordination with third countries. Coordination between Europe and third countries works very well for migration controls. Why is this collaboration not done to defend the lives of all these people? No one has to die in the water to cross a border! We have to improve this coordination, we have to improve this communication.” ,” she added.

Maleno believes that the problem of illegal emigration is not taken seriously enough by the authorities. The necessary coercive measures are not applied correctly. She talks about a business around this phenomenon that is gaining ground at a pace that is difficult to control. “There is currently a political problem between Spain and Morocco and as a result there is no collaboration to save lives in the water. Migrants are thus in the midst of all this political and diplomatic blackmail. It’s a business. The lives of migrants have become a business. We must stop all this. We must return to this Europe of human rights and we must stop the situation that is happening today. There are ways to stop it, there are capacities,’ she says.

It should be noted that throughout last year, 2170 migrants died at sea, according to the Spanish NGO Caminando, a number almost reached in the first six months of 2021. This unfortunate situation is no doubt linked to the precariousness and difficult living conditions of young people in the African continent. Without any hope of employability or active participation in the economic life of the continent, they prefer to brave the obstacles at the cost of their lives to try to return to the Canary Islands.

IMMIGRATION

SENEGAL – 97 migrants intercepted in Saint-Louis by the French Navy

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9 months .

01/09/2023 à 15:28

Par

Aminata-Bintou Ndiaye

The National Navy has boarded Thursday, August 24, 2024 a dugout canoe of clandestines off the coast of Saint-Louisiennes. The canoe had 97 migrants on board, including 83 Senegalese (three women and two minors). The other 14 are foreigners (12 Gambians and 02 Malians), reports the newspaper Les Échos.

According to the information of the newspaper, they were sent by the navy Thursday, aboard the patrol at sea «le Fouladou» to the Arsenal of the National Navy at the Autonomous Port of Dakar. Upon landing, they were received by the commander of the naval base of the French Navy.

It should be noted that «as soon as the navy announced the interception of this canoe, the prosecutor of the Republic opened an investigation to know the ins and outs. The investigation is entrusted to the National Directorate for Combating Smuggling of Migrants (DNLT) of the Directorate of Air and Border Police,” the newspaper added

“When asked at the outset where they were embarking, they replied that the canoe left on 21 August in Kayar. They were intercepted 250 km off the coast of Saint-Louis by the French Navy on the night of August 21 to 22,” our colleagues explain

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IMMIGRATION

ILLEGAL EMIGRATION – 66 Senegalese migrants arrive in Tenerife

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9 months .

10/08/2023 à 09:03

Par

Sylviane Sofia Roy

Sixty-six (66) people arrived during the day of Thursday, August 03, 2023 in Tenerife aboard two canoes. In one of them there were 14 people and in the other 52.

Several of the migrants were transferred to health centres with various health situations, a journalist told the news. The majority of its young people are Senegalese.

As a reminder, in Africa, migrant smuggling brings 59 billion CFA francs to smugglers per year. Illicit financial flows (FFI) from the smuggling of migrants from West Africa to Europe are estimated at more than $100 million per year, 59,250,000,000 CFA francs, according to a report published by the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) on 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.

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IMMIGRATION

AFRICA – Migrant smuggling brings 59 billion CFA francs to smugglers per year

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10 months .

02/08/2023 à 15:43

Par

Morgan Anyango

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.

“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.

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

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