This Year, A Record Number of West African Migrants Have Arrived In Spain – Spanish Authorities

By: Seringe ST Touray

Spain is facing a record influx of migrants from West Africa, with nearly 32,000 arrivals on the Canary Islands this year—surpassing the 2006 migration crisis.

Most migrants are young people from Senegal seeking better opportunities in Europe, making a perilous journey of over 1,500 kilometers in old fishing boats.

Socio-political unrest, unemployment, and rising food prices in Senegal contribute to the surge.

Spain’s Interior minister, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, has urged the Senegalese government to address the issue by “acting quickly”, emphasizing the need to prevent more deaths on the dangerous route, where at least 512 people have died this year according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM).