Despite the government implementing various measures and decrees to discourage immigration, Italy witnessed a 50 per cent increase in the number of immigrant landings last year compared to the year before.
The total reached 156,000 individuals, including 17,000 unaccompanied minors. In 2023, a total of 155,754 people landed in Italy, a significant increase from the 103,846 reported in 2022, as disclosed by the Italian Interior Ministry on December 29.
In addition, August emerged as the month with the highest landings, recording 25,673 arrivals, Ansa explains.
As the new year begins, more than 1,000 individuals have already arrived on Italian shores in the first days of 2024 through irregular migration channels.
According to government analysis, the prevailing economic and political instability in Tunisia has made its shores the main departure point for individuals seeking to leave the African continent, even though the efforts of the Tunisian Coast Guard were successful in apprehending those travelling to Europe via the Mediterranean Sea has been limited.
The Italian government claims that the involvement of Russian Wagner mercenaries in West Africa has further fueled this trend. It suggests that, supported by Moscow, Wagner’s mercenaries implemented a strategy to intensify the migration situation on the continent by destabilising the region.
However, the Italian authorities are optimistic that the impact of migration will soften in 2024. This optimism stems from an agreement within the European Union on a new pact on migration and asylum.
Moreover, according to Ansa, the pact aims to implement measures such as a more equal distribution of asylum seekers among EU member states, offering hope for a more comprehensive approach to managing the migration challenge.
Italy has faced a significant influx of migrants, surpassing one million since 2013, coupled with a worrying death rate that exceeds 28,000 individuals. The tragic trend began in 2013, with 368 migrants losing their lives during a difficult journey from Libya.
Data provided by the NGO Save the Children also revealed that over 28,000 migrants in the Mediterranean have lost their lives trying to reach Italy, including 1,143 minors.
More than 100 minors, accounting for four per cent, have suffered tragic fates or gone missing in the Mediterranean this year alone. From 2014 onwards, 112,000 unaccompanied minors have reached Italy by sea, with over 11,600 minors undertaking the dangerous Mediterranean crossing and arriving unaccompanied between January 1 and October 2023. The peak of immigrant arrivals in Italy occurred in 2016, with 181,000 immigrants arriving there.
