Emergency responders on Monday rescued 136 African migrants attempting to reach Europe, from a boat off the coast of El Hierro, one of the Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean near Africa’s coast.
These migrants were brought to Spain’s La Restinga port by a Spanish sea search and rescue vessel.
According to AFP, Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, facing a significant increase in migrant arrivals, is set to begin a three-day visit to West Africa on Tuesday.
His itinerary includes stops in Mauritania, The Gambia, and Senegal, key nations in the ongoing migration crisis.
The migration crisis in the Canary Islands has led to daily rescues by Spain’s coastguard, and the islands’ government has called for additional assistance.
The regional leader, Fernando Clavijo, who met with Sanchez on Friday, appealed to the European Union for more support, stressing that the Canary Islands should not bear the burden of Europe’s migratory pressure alone.
Clavijo emphasized, “In the end, it’s a pressure for Europe because they are arriving in Europe, in Spain, and not just on the Canary Islands.”
Madrid estimates that around 200,000 people in Mauritania are preparing to make the journey to the Canary Islands.
Although Sanchez visited Mauritania six months ago, it’s unclear what incentives he might offer this time to encourage Mauritanian authorities to intensify their efforts to prevent such departures.
The Canary Islands and Spain often serve as waypoints for West African migrants en route to France and other European destinations.
Between January 1 and August 15, 2024, 22,304 migrants arrived on the islands, a 126 percent increase compared to the 9,864 arrivals during the same period in 2023, according to Spain’s interior ministry.
Nationwide, Spain recorded 31,155 migrant arrivals by mid-August, a 66.2 percent rise from 18,745 the previous year.
With better weather conditions expected in the fall, the numbers are anticipated to rise further.
In 2023, record of 39,910 arrivals is likely to be surpassed in 2024, cementing the Atlantic route to the Canary Islands as the primary but hazardous path for migrants.
Clavijo warned in an interview with El Mundo newspaper that the archipelago is “on the verge of collapse,” with projections suggesting that arrivals could reach 50,000 this year.
The Atlantic route is notoriously dangerous due to strong currents, resulting in thousands of deaths and disappearances annually on overcrowded, often unseaworthy boats.
Meanwhile, other parts of Spain, including the small enclave of Ceuta, have also seen a recent surge in migrant arrivals.
