Senegal and Spain have agreed to jointly patrol Senegalese territorial waters to help stem the tide of illegal migration to Spain’s Canary Islands some 1,500 km away.
Illegal migration from Senegal to the archipelago has surged in recent months. Authorities say some 17,000 illegal migrants have turned up on the archipelago this year, including about 1,200 last weekend alone.
The accord, which was signed on Thursday, provides for joint patrols to begin immediately between Spain’s civil guard and Senegalese security forces for an initial period of nine weeks. The patrols will continue if necessary, Senegalese Interior Minister Ousmane Ngom told reporters.
Spain is providing a helicopter, a plane and a patrol boat to support the endeavor. Italy is furnishing an additional boat. Spain has already provided 20 pick-up trucks, 50 motorcycles, 50 computers, 50 infrared goggles and 50 walkie-talkies to help Senegalese gendarmes, police and marines patrol the coast.
“From the beginning we have measured the impact that emigration could have for the two countries,” Ngom said. “With the means offered by Spain, the mixed security forces are going to have a force of sufficient, dissuasive strength to put an end to this scourge.”
Referring to human traffickers, Ngom said Senegal would arrest “these sellers of illusions who use the naiveté of would-be migrants to enrich themselves.”
Although Spain’s civil guard will be able to detain migrants, Senegalese authorities are responsible for establishing identity and making arrests.
With Thursday’s agreement, Senegal effectively signed up to Frontex, which coordinates the activities of national border guards to ensure the security of the European Union’s borders with non-member states. It became operational last year. Mauritania and Cape Verde are already parties to the agreement.
Spain has no formal repatriation agreement with Senegal. As a result, Spanish authorities in the past were forced to release illegal Senegalese immigrants and others with no identity papers at all, on the Spanish mainland.
Senegalese officials have proposed development projects to help would-be migrants set up businesses and participate in training courses for farming, tourism, fishing or crafts to keep them at home.
“We want to give the youth reason to hope and convince them that the solution is here in Senegal, not abroad,” said Ngom.
Fishermen in the northern Senegalese coastal city of St. Louis earlier this week staged a rally to raise local people’s awareness of the dangers of illegal migration. Many migrants never make it to the Canary Islands and instead are lost at sea or washed ashore on the archipelago or the West African coast.
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Illegal migration from Senegal to the archipelago has surged in recent months. Authorities say some 17,000 illegal migrants have turned up on the archipelago this year, including about 1,200 last weekend alone.
The accord, which was signed on Thursday, provides for joint patrols to begin immediately between Spain’s civil guard and Senegalese security forces for an initial period of nine weeks. The patrols will continue if necessary, Senegalese Interior Minister Ousmane Ngom told reporters.
Spain is providing a helicopter, a plane and a patrol boat to support the endeavor. Italy is furnishing an additional boat. Spain has already provided 20 pick-up trucks, 50 motorcycles, 50 computers, 50 infrared goggles and 50 walkie-talkies to help Senegalese gendarmes, police and marines patrol the coast.
“From the beginning we have measured the impact that emigration could have for the two countries,” Ngom said. “With the means offered by Spain, the mixed security forces are going to have a force of sufficient, dissuasive strength to put an end to this scourge.”
Referring to human traffickers, Ngom said Senegal would arrest “these sellers of illusions who use the naiveté of would-be migrants to enrich themselves.”
Although Spain’s civil guard will be able to detain migrants, Senegalese authorities are responsible for establishing identity and making arrests.
With Thursday’s agreement, Senegal effectively signed up to Frontex, which coordinates the activities of national border guards to ensure the security of the European Union’s borders with non-member states. It became operational last year. Mauritania and Cape Verde are already parties to the agreement.
Spain has no formal repatriation agreement with Senegal. As a result, Spanish authorities in the past were forced to release illegal Senegalese immigrants and others with no identity papers at all, on the Spanish mainland.
Senegalese officials have proposed development projects to help would-be migrants set up businesses and participate in training courses for farming, tourism, fishing or crafts to keep them at home.
“We want to give the youth reason to hope and convince them that the solution is here in Senegal, not abroad,” said Ngom.
Fishermen in the northern Senegalese coastal city of St. Louis earlier this week staged a rally to raise local people’s awareness of the dangers of illegal migration. Many migrants never make it to the Canary Islands and instead are lost at sea or washed ashore on the archipelago or the West African coast.
sab/cs/nr
This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions
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