On the occasion of Migrants’ Day celebrated today in the country, Mamadou Mignane Diouf, Coordinator of the Senegalese Social Forum, was recently the guest of the show Salam Senegal on Radio Senegal. During his speech, he highlighted an alarming observation: irregular migration routes are increasingly difficult to access, pushing many people to take dangerous routes.
Between 2021 and 2023, a considerable number of canoes left Senegal to try to reach Europe, but it is impossible to provide a precise figure. He explained that, to better understand this situation, a project was set up in collaboration with journalists, aimed at collecting approximate data on the number of canoes, migrants, arrivals and deaths.
The coordinator spoke of the numerous trips made to localities such as Mbour, Joal, Palmarin, Casamance and Saint-Louis, in order to meet bereaved families and collect testimonies. However, he recognized the difficulty of this task, particularly due to the reluctance of certain witnesses and often contradictory data. The results obtained are worrying, with a 70% increase in the migration rate between 2022 and 2023. The figures for deaths and disappearances are also increasing, particularly between March and November 2024, a period during which favorable climatic conditions and knowledge by smugglers in the best seasons to make these journeys contribute to the increase in the phenomenon.
Mamadou Mignane Diouf also highlighted an important aspect: migration is inseparable from the lives of individuals. According to him, the solution lies in facilitating legal migration channels, in particular through the issuance of visas. He also called for the signing of visa quotas with European countries, as well as the establishment of integrated development programs for young people. The coordinator of the Senegalese Social Forum concluded by hoping that these initiatives could
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Senegal
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