Doha – A new report by Mixed Migration Centre released this month reveals how Morocco has significantly strengthened enforcement mechanisms along migration routes to Europe, successfully preventing tens of thousands of “illegal crossings” since early 2023.
The study, titled “Beyond restrictions: how migration and smuggling adapt to changing policies across the Mediterranean, the Atlantic and the English Channel,” examines how Morocco’s strategic position has allowed it to negotiate favorable agreements with both Spain and the European Union.
“Morocco’s ongoing role as both a transit and destination country for migrants has created significant opportunities for it to leverage its position in ‘managing migration’ between mainland Europe and Africa,” the report states, detailing how this has resulted in multiple deals signed over the past two decades.
In July 2022, the EU launched an Anti-smuggling Operational Partnership with Morocco, ostensibly to “tackle criminal networks, address irregular migration and save lives.”
This partnership exists alongside broader EU support worth €1.4 billion for “reforms and increased resilience” until 2027.
According to the report, the diplomatic relationship between Spain and Morocco has also substantially improved since 2022, following an incident in 2021 when approximately 10,000 people entered Ceuta in a single day.
The two countries have subsequently repaired and strengthened their “strategic partnership” on migration through a series of agreements on “migration management” in 2023.
The research indicates that Morocco’s enforcement actions have made the Western Mediterranean Route (WMR) “increasingly inaccessible to sub-Saharan Africans.”
Following the 2022 tragedy at Melilla, where 23 migrants were killed, the report notes there has been “racial profiling that prevents Sub-Saharan Africans from being in the area near the enclave.”
“The Moroccan authorities treat people differently according to whether they are North African or Sub-Saharan. People from Sub-Saharan Africa know that Morocco is not safe for them,” one interviewee told researchers.
Morocco holds the line
Data from the report shows that since numbers along this route spiked in 2018 with 60,000 crossings, they have steadily reduced and then remained relatively stable at around 17,000 crossings per year.
In 2024, arrivals to Spain via the WMR stood at 17,475, comparable to the 17,208 recorded in 2023.
This stability in numbers reflects Morocco’s consistent enforcement efforts. According to Frontex data cited in the report, numbers along this route in 2024 (between January and October) reduced by 5% compared to the same period in 2023.
Despite decreased movement along the WMR, smuggling networks remain active, operating as “poly criminal networks in order to sustain revenue in times of slowed movement” with diversified income sources across various avenues including illicit drugs and other goods trafficking.
This suggests smuggler networks “could easily be ready to return to, or expand migrant smuggling if demand returns.”
The study places Morocco’s tight command over migration flows in a wider European context, noting that in March 2025, Frontex reported a 25% drop in irregular migration during January–February compared to the same period in 2024.
The report wraps up by applauding Morocco’s firm grip on migration flows. As one interviewee noted: “Spain and the EU have paid Morocco a lot of money for migrant control, so that has reduced the numbers coming through that route.”
Read also: Morocco Halts Over 78,000 Irregular Migration Attempts in 2024
