Influence of climate change, overfishing and COVID19 on irregular migration in West Africa

Throughout 2020, according to the Spanish Ministry of Home Office, 23,023 irregular migrants reached the coasts of the Canary Islands in Spain, 757% more than the previous year. The migrants left from the coasts of West Africa, mainly from Senegal, trying to reach the nearest European Union (EU) territory. Apart from the migrants who arrived in the Canary Islands, nearly 1,500 stayed on the way, and 594 of them died drowned or of dehydration. Behind this migratory tragedy, there is a combination of factors, with three essential ones operating synergistically: climate change, which is affecting agriculture, fishing and exacerbating coastal erosion; overfishing, which is depleting regional fisheries; and the COVID-19 pandemic, which, in addition to the victims caused, has left the region without tourism, and with an economy in recession. This paper reviews these causal factors, highlighting his influence on migration and the responsibility of migrants receiving countries – especially those in the EU – for the causes of migration.