The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) says at least 8,565 people have lost their lives on migration routes across the world in 2023, making it the deadliest year on record.
According to data collected by IOM’s Missing Migrants Project, the 2023 death toll represents a tragic increase of 20 per cent compared to 2022, highlighting the urgent need for action to prevent further loss of life.
“As we mark the Missing Migrants Project’s 10 years, we first remember all these lives lost. Every single one of them is a terrible human tragedy that reverberates through families and communities for years to come,” said IOM Deputy Director General Ugochi Daniels.
“These horrifying figures collected by the Missing Migrants Project are also a reminder that we must recommit to greater action that can ensure safe migration for all, so that 10 years from now, people aren’t having to risk their lives in search of a better one.”
Last year’s total surpasses the number of dead and missing globally in the previous record year of 2016, when 8,084 people died during migration, making it the deadliest year since the Missing Migrants Project’s inception in 2014.
As safe and regular migration pathways remain limited, hundreds of thousands of people attempt to migrate every year via irregular routes in unsafe conditions.
Slightly more than half of the deaths were a result of drowning, with nine per cent caused by vehicle accidents, and seven per cent by violence.
sa/mud
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