Moroccan authorities have confirmed that over 2,000 migrants, mostly from sub-Saharan African countries, were rescued from boats attempting to cross Moroccan waters to the Canary Islands in Spain in a bid to reach Europe in the past two months.
The country’s security service, in a report released on Sunday, said that majority of migrants were fleeing instability in the Sahel region of Africa to seek asylum in Spanish and Moroccan territories.
“Though the number of irregular migration attempts towards Europe has been reduced, over 2,000 migrants were rescued from dilapidated and make-shift boats off Moroccan waters in the past two months,” the report said.
Spanish news agency, EFE, in a statement on the migrant crisis, stressed that 85% of the irregular migrants rescued were from sub-Saharan countries.
“Migrant networks use numerous vessels from countries like Mauritania and Senegal to transit through waters in their attempt to reach the Spanish territory.
“In the past week only, Moroccan security services rescued 235 people from Atlantic waters. Data indicated that of the 2,000 people who were rescued in the past two months in southern provinces, only 300 were Moroccans,” the Moroccan Interior Ministry also said.
Earlier in July, Spain’s Prime Minister, Pedro Sanchez, had stressed the importance of Morocco as a strategic ally in many sectors, including migration management.
“Relations with Morocco are very important and fundamental especially in the areas of trade and economy since practically all of Spain’s investments on the African continent are concentrated in Morocco,” Sanchez had said.
“Often, when we think about immigration, we are not aware that Morocco also suffers from this irregular migration that comes from a very unstable region like the Sahel, and that many young people front these countries are looking for a better future not only in Europe, but also in African countries like Morocco,” he added.