Though the Sahara Desert has been consuming a number of people trying to venture across, it is actually the Mediterranean Sea which swallows a lion share of immigrants trying to escape from their previous countries.
Drowning, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM) is the Leading Cause of Deaths.
Nearly 60 percent of deaths documented during migration are linked to drowning with over 27,000 related deaths occurring in the Mediterranean
The International Organization for Migration has hatched an initiative with the Government of Tanzania, a project known as ‘Voluntary return assistance and protection of stranded migrants in Tanzania!’
Tanzania, apparently, is one of the countries that immigrants from Ethiopia, DR Congo and Burundi have been using to transverse across the continent in their quest to seek better places of living.
While in Tanzania the immigrants will either be seeking refuge within the country or simply use it as the portal into other destinations such as South Africa.
The IOM Chief of Mission, Maurizio Busatti said the government of Tanzania, through the ministry of community development, gender, women and special group in coordination with the international organization for migration has been actively involved in the implementation of the project.
Busatti was addressing a national dialogue addressing irregular migration and enhancing protection of migrants in vulnerable situations in Tanzania at an event which was held at Morena hotel in Dares Salaam.
“One of the critical components of the project is the establishment of National Referral Mechanism (NRM) for migrants in vulnerable situations,” pointed out the Chief of Mission.
“The four groups of migrants that the referral mechanism will cover are victims of trafficking in persons, survivors of gender based violence, unaccompanied and separated children or smuggled children and migrants in irregular situations including those with medical needs or disabilities,” said Busatti.
The ongoing dialogues, according to Busatti, are expected to produce a stock-taking report outlining the recommendations and agreed way forward for the government of Tanzania toward addressing irregular migration and protection of migrants in vulnerable situations.
A Tanzanian Immigration officer, who prefers anonymity, said the country has been experiencing a surge of illegal immigrants from mostly Kenya, Ethiopia, DR Congo and Burundi, among other countries and the department is conducting border sensitization programs to avert criminal cases that may arise.
“They usually infiltrate the country through illegal routes striding the Namanga, Holili, Kigoma and the Indian Ocean shoreline,” the officer revealed.
A representative from the Ministry of Community Development, Gender, Women and Special Groups Mirium Luka reveals that between 2022 and 2024 they had managed to rescue 157 children that were being smuggled across the borders.
“They include 75 minors from Burundi; 36 children from Ethiopia; 9 from Malawi; 4 from Kenya; 2 from Rwanda and one child from Somalia that are being taken care of at a safe house,” she stated.
Dangerous situation
More than 8,565 people died on migration routes worldwide in 2023.
The figure indicates a 20 percent increase compared to the number of deaths that occurred in 2022. This makes 2023 to be the deadliest year on record, according to data collected by IOM’s Missing Migrants Project.
The Mediterranean crossing continues to be the deadliest route for migrants on record, with at least 3,129 deaths and disappearances.
This is the highest death toll recorded in the Mediterranean since 2017.
Regionally, unprecedented numbers of migrant deaths were recorded across Africa (1,866) and Asia (2,138).
In Africa, most of these deaths occurred in the Sahara Desert and the sea route to the Canary Islands. In Asia, hundreds of deaths of Afghan and Rohingya refugees fleeing their countries of origin were recorded last year.
In 2024, the world marks ten years since the establishment of the Missing Migrants Project as the only open-access database on migrant deaths and disappearances, the project has documented more than 63,000 global cases.
The true figure, however, is estimated to be much higher due to challenges in data collection particularly in remote locations such as the Darien National Park in Panama and on maritime routes, where IOM regularly records reports of invisible shipwrecks where boats disappear without a trace.
Established in 2014 following two devastating shipwrecks off the coast of Lampedusa, Italy, the Missing Migrants Project (MMP) is recognized as the sole indicator measuring the level of ‘safety’ of migration in the Sustainable Development Goals and the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration.
It provides an opportunity for IOM and partners to assess ongoing work to expand safe and regular migration pathways, enhance search and rescue operations, and support affected individuals and families.
IOM, alongside many other organizations, and as Coordinator of the United Nations Network on Migration, calls on governments and the international community to continue working together to prevent further loss of life and uphold the dignity and rights of all individuals.
SOMALIA
Abdiwali Jibril from the Somalia Embassy in Tanzania says most people in his country are traders who always venture afar in search of better places for business.
“The Western Route is the most challenging for the seafaring Somali traders, many of them perish in the Mediterranean,” said Jibril
ETHIOPIA
Elias Hariso, an official from the Ethiopian Embassy in Dar-es-salaam admits that Ethiopians have been using all means possible to flee from their country seeking greener pastures elsewhere.
“They usually use Tanzania as their escape portal towards South Africa where many of their relatives and friends are based,” explains Hariso.
BURUNDI
Col. Sebastian Bandiribusa, a delegate from the Embassy of Burundi said even the Burundians who illegally travel from the country are mostly seeking wealth and business opportunities but not due to security concerns as is being speculated.
“Tanzania is better off economically than Burundi because a salary of 200,000/- Tanzanian shillings translate into half-a-million Burundi Francs which means most people in Bujumbura would rather travel to work in Dar-es-salaam, or Nairobi,” Col. Bandiribusa explains.
What other organizations are doing
The Director of Non-Government Organization known as ‘Wote Sawa Tanzania,’ Elisha David said they have been addressing the issue of illegal human trafficking and fighting against child labor.
“We have established ‘Safe Houses,’ to cater for illegal immigrants and children rescued from dire working situations,” said David.
Wote Sawa-Tz has so far managed to house 298 protégés at the Kasulu Center which was established in Kigoma in 2021.
“Most are immigrants from Burundi among them 181 women and 117 men, however we managed to send majority of them back home and current the center is left with only 25 members, that is 18 women and 7 men,” said the Director.
The organization has rescued children from as young as 5 years and youth of up to 18 years who were being slaved under tough working conditions after being promised huge wages that never materialized.
What Experts Say
A Research Project conducted by the University of Dar-es-salaam in the Western Peninsular of Tanzania revealed that many of the illegal immigrants from Burundi were escapees from refugees’ camps as well as those that crossed the border into Kigoma.
The 2019 study discovered that the majority of the immigrants took up farming jobs at Kasulu.
“We also discovered that there are times when people who employ the immigrants would refuse to pay them and this normally creates enmity and sometimes result in acts of revenge and eventually crime,” explained Prof Opportune Kweka.
The Don added that there were cases of people from Rwanda, Burundi and DR Congo establishing joint business ventures with Tanzanians and these would sometimes result into conflicts after the foreigners get ripped off.
Cases of bribe and corruption involving illegal aliens and immigration officers were also discovered to be rampant in Western Tanzania, precisely Kigoma and these sometimes in sync with even darker issues of blackmailing
Some observers suggest that people in refugee camps should be allowed to engage in income generating activities such as farming to satisfy increasing food demands.