EU borders: Irregular crossings down 25 percent in January-February

Brussels – After the 40 percent general drop in irregular arrivals in the Union in the first eleven months of 2024, border crossings continue to decline. As data from Frontex, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, showed, the number fell to 25,000 in the first two months of 2025, with the Western Balkan route experiencing the most significant decline (minus 64 percent).

The West Africa corridor saw a sharp contraction but remains Europe’s busiest migration route: 7200 crossings in sixty days, with Mali, Senegal, and Guinea as the leading countries of departure.

On the other hand, the Central Mediterranean route was affected by a significant increase in irregular arrivals, which were 48 percent more than at the end of 2024, the highest on the entire continent. 6900 irregulars, the vast majority of whom reach European shores from Libya: a key role of the boatmen, who, as Frontex indicates, are increasingly equipping themselves with powerful speedboats capable of bypassing coastal authorities. Bengali nationals mostly come from this route, taking advantage of formal agreements between Libya and Bangladesh. They arrive in the North African country with a work permit and then embark. The International Organization for Migration estimates that 248 people lost their lives at sea between January and February (in all of 2024, deaths were estimated at 2300).

At the end of February, the Eastern Mediterranean is Europe’s third largest migration corridor, with nearly 6500 arrivals. However, the flows on this route have declined by 35 percent: after a peak of 6700 arrivals in October, the pressure has gradually decreased, aided by the winter weather. There was also a drop in illegal crossings from the Channel, by 28 percent compared to last year (4400 registered irregulars). Only 1400 irregulars were ascertained along the Balkan Route border.
The main nationalities of undocumented migrants were Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Mali, while there was a drop in illegal arrivals from Syria.