The number of irregular Moroccan migrants who arrived in Spain has multiplied by eight in a period of two years.
Rabat – Spanish news outlet Diarodesvilla shared statistics from the Spanish Ministry of Interior, saying that by the end of October, 10,060 irregular Moroccan migrants had arrived in Spain so far this year, up from 1,310 in the same period in 2016.
The news outlet reported that 90 percent of the migrants arrived in Spain by sea to Andalusia and the rest to the Canary Islands.
The news outlet added that some of the irregular migrants returned to the Spanish enclave of Ceuta and Melilla, where they asked for asylum.
Read Also: Morocco’s Royal Navy Rescues 181 Irregular Migrants
Moroccan migration might increase in the coming years as a new Gallup survey has estimated that Morocco would lose 19 percent of its adult population and 29 percent of its 15 to 29-year-olds if migration were completely possible.
To help ease the pressure of migration on Morocco, the European Union said that it will grant financial aid to Morocco to help combat irregular migration.
The EU will give Morocco €148 million in the coming days, according to a statement from the EU Commission.
The statement, issued on December 14, said that the EU is currently “stepping up its assistance to Morocco to combat irregular migration in a context of increased migratory pressures along the western Mediterranean route.”
According to El Pais, Spain’s National Statistics Institute (INE) said that Moroccan immigration “peaked 10 years ago as there were 70,000 arrivals of migrants.” In 2017 39,000 migrants arrived in Spain from Morocco.
Spanish and Moroccan news outlets reported today that Spain has dismantled a Moroccan human trafficking network operating between Spain and Morocco.
The suspects involved in the network, all of which were Moroccans, were arrested. EFE reported that network has been labeling itself as a “travel agency” based in Larache, a city near Tangier in northern Morocco. The suspects charged the irregular migrants a minimum of €2,500 per passenger.
