United Nations (EFE).- At least 289 children, an average of eleven a week, have died or disappeared this year crossing the Central Mediterranean when they tried to reach the Italian coast from Africa, according to estimates made public today by Unicef.
The United Nations agency for children estimates that since 2018 some 1,500 minors have died or disappeared on this migratory route, which would represent around one in five people who disappeared on this route to reach Europe.
However, Unicef stresses that many shipwrecks go undocumented, so the figures are probably much higher.
unaccompanied minors
In a statement, the agency estimates that 11,600 children – an average of 428 a week – have arrived from Africa to Italian shores so far this year, twice as many as in the same period in 2022.
Most cross from Libya and Tunisia, in many cases after having already completed dangerous journeys from other African or Middle Eastern countries.
According to data from the first three months of 2023, more than 70% of minors who arrived in Europe by this route did so unaccompanied or separated from their parents or legal guardians, exposing them to a greater risk of violence, exploitation and abuses.
“This is a clear signal that more must be done to create safe and legal pathways for children to access asylum and to strengthen efforts to save lives at sea,” UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell said in the note. .
In this sense, UNICEF asks governments, among other things, for more protection for minors, more coordination in rescue operations and more work in the countries of origin to reduce the number of people fleeing their homes.