Irregular border crossings into EU drop sharply in 2024

News News Release Management Board updates Irregular border crossings into EU drop sharply in 20242025-01-14 New preliminary data from Frontex reveal a significant 38% drop in irregular border crossings into the EU in 2024, reaching the lowest level since 2021, when migration was still affected by the COVID pandemic. Despite persistent migration pressure, intensified EU and partner cooperation against smuggling networks has significantly reduced crossings at Europe’s external borders, with just over 239 000 detections recorded last year. The decrease in the total number was mainly driven by a 59% plunge in arrivals via the Central Mediterranean route and a 78% fall in detections on the Western Balkan route. Not all routes saw the same trends, as patterns shifted across the continent. Key developments include:Central Mediterranean route: Crossings dropped by 59% due to fewer departures from Tunisia and Libya. Despite the significant decrease, this route still accounted for about 67,000 crossings, the second highest among all routes. Western Balkan route: A sharp 78% fall followed strong efforts by regional countries to stem the flow. Eastern Mediterranean route: Detections rose by 14% to 69 400, driven by new corridors from eastern Libya, with migrants predominantly from Syria, Afghanistan, and Egypt. Western African route: The Canary Islands saw an 18% increase in arrivals to almost 47 000, the highest figure since Frontex began collecting data in 2009. This was fuelled by...