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Algeria + 14 more

Quarterly Mixed Migration Update North Africa, Quarter 4, 2024

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Key Updates

• A 58% decrease in migrant arrivals in Italy between 2023 and 2024 coincided with a 16% increase in the number of migrants crossing the Atlantic to the Canary Islands during the same period. In 2024, Spain recorded 63,970 irregular arrivals, including 46,843 to the Canary Islands (+17%), while Italy saw 65,474 total arrivals. Compared to last quarter, arrivals to Spain increased by 25% while arrivals to Italy decreased by 31%.

• In 2024, the Balearic Islands record 6,000 migrants arrivals, triple the 2,278 recorded in 2023. Most of these migrants departed from Algeria. Since August, 2,024 people have been rescued in the Balearic region, including over 700 who arrived during just four days in November. To address this, Algerian authorities established a new security unit in December to combat migrant smuggling.

• According to the NGO Caminando Fronteras, a record number of 10,000 migrants died or disappeared while attempting to reach Spain by sea in 2024, including 9,757 deaths on the Atlantic Route alone. Meanwhile, the International Organization for Migration (IOM)’s Missing Migrants Project (MMP) recorded 1,062 deaths or disappearances along the Atlantic route, 412 on the WMR, and 1,659 on the CMR.

• Rights advocates and UN experts criticise EU’s consideration of Tunisia as a safe disembarkation point for migrants. Despite the European Union and its member states considering Tunisia as a safe place for disembarking migrants intercepted at sea, a joint declaration by human rights and humanitarian organisations, published on 4 October, stated that Tunisia cannot be considered a “safe place” for such disembarkation.

• Return operations from Tunisia increases in 2024, with EU support. As of 16 October 2024, IOM has assisted over 5,400 migrants with voluntary return, reflecting a 111% increase compared to the 2,557 migrants returned in 2023 and a 206% increase compared to 2022.

• Morocco increases bilateral cooperation on migration management. The country signed an agreement with Spain in October on the return of Moroccan unaccompanied minors from Spain, though EU legal challenges hinder the process. Morocco and France also signed a “Reinforced Exceptional Partnership”, focusing on facilitating regular migration, combating irregular migration, and improving readmission procedures for Moroccan returnees from France.

• Morocco and the EU negotiate a new partnership agreement to address irregular migration and enhance trade relations. This new partnership agreement is akin to those signed with Egypt and Tunisia in 2023, valued at 7.4 billion euros and 1 billion euros respectively.