La Strada Documentation Center

The role of organized crime crime in the smuggling of migrants from West Africa to the European Union

Document number
2755
Date
2011
Title
The role of organized crime crime in the smuggling of migrants from West Africa to the European Union
Author/publisher
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)
Availability
LSI library
Document type(s)
Research/Study/Analysis,
Keywords
Migrant rights; Migration management; Comprehensive approach to migration; Migration policy; Restrictive migration measures,
Summary
The report shows that establishment of smugglers' groups is often an unintended result of "increased efficiency in border interdiction". The majority of groups involved in the smuggling of migrants from West Africa to Europe belong mostly to transnational organised criminal groups, and that smugglers are usually migrants themselves. Furthermore, regarding perception of migrants, counter-intuitively "irregular migrants generally do not see themselves as victims, and smugglers do not see themselves as criminals". The report analysing the involvement of organized criminal groups in the smuggling of migrants from West Africa towards the EU, aims at better understanding of the mechanisms and actors involved in the criminal phenomenon, so that it can serve as a basis for future reforms in countries with high level of smuggling activity.
Related documents