Voyage of Life or Death

The phenomenon of irregular migration has become a major global security threat in the last four years. A December 2018 report published by the United Nations Human Rights Council, in collaboration with the United Nations Support Mission in Libya, revealed that Nigeria is a key contributor to the scourge of irregular migration in Africa and Europe.  A number of Nigerian youth have taken to illegal migration especially through North Africa to Europe in search of a better lot in life.  For instance, majority of the 119,310 migrants and refugees who got to Italy from Libya via the Central Mediterranean Sea in 2017 were Nigerians, Chadians, Egyptians, Sudanese, and Ghanaians. A total of 2,832 of the migrants lost their lives during the dangerous journeys.  In 2018, 20,859 migrants and refugees made it to Italy and 234 arrived in Malta.  Despite a drop in the number of arrivals in Italy, the journey has become more perilous as over 1,200 migrants perished in the sea as at August 31, 2018.  Nigeria now ranks as the 6^th provider of irregular migrants in the world.  Following the deadly nature of the voyage, this edition of Nextier SPD Weekly examines the risks posed by such migration and makes recommendations on how the challenges can be addressed. …

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