Ben Pawlowski
PEDRO Sanchez has vowed to support the creation of 250,000 new jobs in the poverty-stricken west African nation of Mauritania in an effort to stem the tide of tens of thousands of migrants who attempt to reach Spain each year.
The Spanish prime minister is currently on a tour of Mauritania, Senegal and the Gambia, the starting point for the vast majority of migrants who attempt to reach the Canary Islands by small boat, widely regarded as the world’s most dangerous migration route.
So far this year, over 31,000 migrants have arrived in Spain, 22,300 of whom arrived via the Canary Islands, an archipelago located 800 miles from the Spanish mainland in the Atlantic Ocean and just 67 miles off the African coast.
Shocking figures have revealed that 4,808 deaths were recorded in the first five months of 2024 alone, equating to 33 deaths a day or one every 45 minutes
On Tuesday, Sanchez met with Mohamed Cheikh El Ghazouani, the president of Mauritania, and announced a series of agreements designed to ‘disincentivise’ those who make the perilous journey to the Canaries.
Sanchez committed his government to introducing a circular migration programme to Mauritania, and vowed to renew cooperation between the two nations’ security forces in order to combat human trafficking.
In a series of tweets, Sanchez said: “Today, Spain and Mauritania have adopted agreements with a new comprehensive approach that will allow us to manage the migration phenomenon for the benefit of our respective societies”.
He added: “Migration is a question of moral principles, solidarity and dignity. But it is also a question of wealth, development and prosperity. We want to strengthen collaboration with our African partners to jointly address the migration challenge. Spain is committed to safe, orderly and regular migration”.
Mauritania’s president thanked Sanchez for his second visit to the country in under a year and praised Spain’s ‘consistent commitment to our country’s development’.
On Wednesday, Sanchez will meet with leaders from Senegal and the Gambia in a further push to secure bilateral agreements which, he hopes, will stem the tide of small boats crossing the Atlantic.
Spanish government officials are braced for a further wave of crossing attempts in the coming weeks as the waters between the Canary Islands become calmer and more favourable.
According to the Spanish Commission for Refugee Aid, dangerous small boat crossings in the Canaries have surged amid political and social instability in the Sahel region, where there have been ten coups in seven countries in just the last three years.
In Mali, a military regime battling an Islamist insurgency has provoked a mass exodus from the country, with many taking to the Atlantic in search of a better life.
