Africa: Migrants Paid Up to $500 Million in Smuggling Fees On European Sea Routes
[UN News] The price tag for smuggling on European sea routes reached up to half a billion dollars last year, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the UN migration office, IOM, reported on Wednesday.
In 2025, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the UN migration office, IOM, revealed that migrants paid up to $500 million in smuggling fees along European sea routes. Almost half of the migrants attempting to enter Italy or Malta from North Africa or Turkey reported paying fees exceeding $7,500 each, according to an IOM survey.
The Central Mediterranean route, considered the busiest, saw the highest number of people smuggled, ranging between 84,000 to 100,400 individuals. The Eastern Mediterranean route followed, with 48,400 to 51,300 people smuggled. The Northwest African Atlantic route came in third, with 33,000 people being smuggled, while the Western Mediterranean route had 24,500 people smuggled.
The UNODC noted that many of those who paid these fees did not reach their destination, with 3,404 losing their lives or being reported missing. Another 104,200 people were intercepted at sea and returned. The UN concluded that perpetrators commit smuggling offenses to generate profit, but not all those attempting irregular entry on sea routes are smuggled.
The UN estimates that 72 to 86 percent of people departing on the Central Mediterranean route, 73 to 83 percent on the Northwest African Atlantic route, and between 57 to 90 percent on the Western Mediterranean route were smuggled. On the Eastern Mediterranean route, the figure fluctuated between 75 and 90 percent.
Written by urgent.news from AllAfrica's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
