Children make up 20 percent of all people migrating across the Mediterranean, according to statistics. 20 people missing after shipwreck off Lampedusa Refugees and migrants
A small boat carrying migrants sank off the coast of Lampedusa on New Year’s Eve, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) reports. Twenty people, including women and children, are missing. Seven people were rescued, including an eight-year-old child whose mother is still missing.
“This tragedy comes just weeks after another deadly incident off the island, in which an 11-year-old girl was the sole survivor,” said Regina de Dominicis, UNICEF Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia.
The number of people dead or missing in the Mediterranean in 2024 exceeded 2,200, with almost 1,700 dying on the central Mediterranean route alone, including hundreds of children. Children account for 20 per cent of all people migrating across the Mediterranean, most fleeing conflict and poverty.
“UNICEF is calling on governments to use the Pact on Migration and Asylum to prioritise the protection of children. This includes ensuring safe, legal pathways for family reunification, as well as coordinated search and rescue operations, safe disembarkation, community-based reception and access to asylum services,” de Dominicis said.
“We also call for increased investment in the provision of essential services for children and families arriving through dangerous migration routes, including psychosocial support, legal aid, health and education,” she added.
UNICEF believes that governments must address the root causes of migration and support the integration of families into host communities. The rights of children must be protected at every stage of their journey, the UN Children’s Fund reminds.