Senegal intercepts 186 people heading for Spain
The Senegalese authorities intercepted 186 migrants headed for the Canary Islands on two wooden canoes in an operation between Tuesday night and early Wednesday morning.
Senegal
UN urges rethink after 45 migrants drown off Libya
The UN says countries must review their approach to migration across the Mediterranean after 45 people recently died in a ship sinking off Libya. It said it was the largest confirmed shipwreck in the area this year.
Europe's top court rules on family reunification of minors
Migrants and refugees in the EU can apply to reunite with their children and bring them to Europe if the children are minors. But what if they reach majority during the proceedings? They can still be reunited with their parents, because what matters is the age they were when the application was filed, the European Court of Justice has ruled.
Remittances run dry during coronavirus pandemic
The coronavirus pandemic has brought a once reliable form of help to a halt: Remittances — that's money sent by people working abroad to their families back home. Many Africans working in Spain who were once able to support relatives in their home countries are now no longer able to do so. Although the strict lockdown measures are slowly being eased, many migrants lost their jobs.
Migrant arrivals increase in Spain's Canary Islands
The number of migrants arriving in the Spanish Canary Islands increased last month to 18 times the number in January 2019, the AFP news agency reports. However, fewer migrants are trying to reach mainland Spain by boat.
Spain grants residency to migrant who saved disabled man
An undocumented migrant from Senegal was granted residency in Spain on Friday after he was celebrated as a hero for having saved a disabled man from a burning building last month.
Hero without papers: Undocumented Senegalese man saves Spanish resident from fire
Gorgui Lamine Sow, an undocumented migrant from Senegal has become a hero in Spain after he saved a man in a wheelchair from a fire in the man’s apartment. Now, the Spanish authorities are considering whether to award Sow a residency permit. More than 55,000 people have signed an online petition asking that they do so.
Mauritanian coast guard intercepts boat carrying around 190 migrants, IOM says
A boat carrying around 190 migrants was intercepted by the Mauritanian coast guard on Friday, the UN migration agency said. This comes less than two days after 63 migrants drowned when their vessel sank in the same waters en route from The Gambia. The country's president has vowed to crack down on people traffickers.
Questions on EU evacuation programs from Libya
A new document by the German government highlights strengths and weaknesses in ongoing EU efforts to evacuate migrants and refugees stranded in Libya. It focused in particular on recent initiatives to move migrants to Rwanda and Niger.
Ghosts from Senegal
The French-Senegalese filmmaker and actor Mati Diop’s first feature film 'Atlantique' tells the story of two types of youth in Senegal -- those who try to make their way to Europe and those who decide to stay behind -- and how the two groups haunt each other and the societies in which they live. The film won the Grand Prix at Cannes and is Senegal’s submission to the Academy Awards in the International Film category.
‘One failed journey is not the end of your life’ – fighting the stigma of return
Tens of thousands of people have set out from West and Central Africa in recent years in the hope of reaching Europe. Not all have completed the dangerous journey – opting instead to retrace their steps and return to their families. But going home brings new risks – including being seen by the community as ‘a failure’.
Most African migrants in Europe are educated, study found
A new UN study takes a closer look at who the migrants coming from Africa to Europe are - and why they left. One of the findings: Migrants are often more educated than their peers who stayed home.