The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said today, Friday, that 11 children die every week trying to cross the Mediterranean in an attempt to immigrate to Europe.
UNICEF said in a statement posted on its website that at least 289 children are estimated to have gone missing or died since the beginning of this year while trying to cross the dangerous migration route in the central Mediterranean from North Africa to Europe.
The statement added that this is equivalent to the death or loss of 11 children every week as they seek security, peace and better opportunities.
UNICEF said it estimates that since 2018, “about 1,500 children have died or gone missing trying to cross the Mediterranean.”
The international organization said many boat sinkings on the Mediterranean transit route do not end with survivors and are not recorded, making it nearly impossible to verify the true number of affected children, who are likely to be much higher.
The organization estimates that 11,600 children have arrived off the coast of Italy from North Africa since January 2023, averaging 428 children per week. This figure is twice the number recorded in the same period in 2022, despite the serious risks to which children are exposed.
The organization notes that the majority of children leave Africa from Libya and Tunisia, going on already dangerous journeys across the continent and the Middle East.
