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Ph:DR: According to the IOM “Missing Migrants” project, the annual number of migrant deaths and disappearances across the Mediterranean increased from 2048 in 2021 to 2411 in 2022 and to 3041 at the end of 2023.
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) revealed on Tuesday January 30, 2024 that nearly 100 people have died or disappeared in the central and eastern Mediterranean since the start of 2024. The toll is twice as heavy as in the same period last year, the deadliest year for migrants at sea in Europe since 2016.
On Tuesday, January 30, 2024, IOM Director General Amy Pope attended the Italy-Africa Conference in Rome to discuss solutions to protect migrants. The conference, titled “A Bridge for Common Growth,” brought together more than 20 heads of state and prime ministers, including Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen. Several UN agencies, the EU and the World Bank, as well as African leaders were represented.
“The Italy-Africa conference is a crucial opportunity to discuss unified and sustainable mechanisms to end this unnecessary loss of life along dangerous routes and to protect people on the move”said Amy Pope, Director General of IOM.
Better, she adds, “even one death is one death too many. This latest census of deaths and disappearances is a stark reminder that a global approach including safe and regular routes – a strategic pillar for IOM – is the only solution that will benefit both migrants and States.”
Italy aims to strengthen its role as a bridge between Europe and Africa through a model of cooperation, development and equitable partnership. It will present its proposed platform of common ideas to be discussed with partners during the conference.
The conference takes place at a time when the number of people presumed dead or missing is on the rise. Three “invisible” ships from Libya, Lebanon and Tunisia carrying 158 people have been recorded in the past six weeks, although the IOM has recorded 73 of them as missing or presumed dead. On Wednesday, authorities rescued a group of 62 migrants off Cape Greco, Cyprus, who had left Lebanon on January 18. Most are hospitalized and described as seriously ill, including several children in serious condition. A child has since died. Seven bodies swept up on the coast of Antalya, in Turkiye, in recent days, belong to a group of migrants who have disappeared since they left Lebanon on December 11.
According to IOM’s Missing Migrants project, the annual number of migrant deaths and disappearances across the Mediterranean increased from 2,048 in 2021 to 2,411 in 2022 and 3,041 at the end of 2023. As Coordinator of the Nations Network United Nations on Migration and in cooperations with other UN agencies and humanitarian partners, IOM is working on recommendations to provide humanitarian assistance to migrants in distress and address the tragedy of those who risk their lives along of these dangerous routes. (Source: The Economist of Benin)
