More than 10,000 migrants died in 2024 trying to reach Spain by sea – aid group

More than 10,000 migrants died while trying to reach Spain by sea this year, a report released by a Spanish migration rights group has said.

An average of 30 migrants died each day attempting to reach the country by boat, Caminando Fronteras (Walking Borders) said.

Overall deaths rose 58% compared with last year, the report added.

Stepping stone

Tens of thousands of migrants left west Africa in 2024 for the Canary Islands, a Spanish archipelago close to the African coast that has increasingly been used as a stepping stone to continental Europe.

Caminando Fronteras said most of the 10,457 deaths recorded up until December 15 took place along that crossing, the so-called Atlantic route, considered one of the world’s most dangerous.

The organisation compiles its figures from families of migrants and official statistics of those rescued.

It included 1,538 children and 421 women among the dead, and April and May were the deadliest months, the report said.

“Sharp increase”

Caminando Fronteras also noted a “sharp increase” in boats leaving from Mauritania, which it said became the main departure point on the route to the Canary Islands.

In February, Spain pledged 210 million euros (around £174 million) in aid to Mauritania to help it crack down on people smugglers and prevent boats from setting off.

Spain’s interior ministry said more than 57,700 migrants reached Spain by boat until December 15 this year, a roughly 12% increase from the same period last year. The vast majority came through the Atlantic route.