In Mayotte, arrivals of migrants from the Great Lakes area are intensifying | EUROtoday

They come from East Africa and, above all, from the Great Lakes area. More and extra migrants, primarily Congolese, journey hundreds of kilometers yearly to achieve the shores of Mayotte. A journey which takes them by means of Tanzania then the Comoros, earlier than reaching the coasts of 101^e French division.

“This Indian Ocean route isn’t new, however has grow to be considerably denser since 2023underlines anthropologist Alison Morano, specialist in migrations in Mayotte. On the island, Great Lakes migrants turned seen. This was not the case once I arrived in 2015: their presence was then marginal. »

In the absence of knowledge on these migratory flows, solely the variety of asylum purposes revealed by the French Office for the Protection of Refugees and Stateless Persons (Ofpra) is ready to present the usage of this route. In 2024, of the two,463 information registered on the island, a little bit greater than half had been filed by Congolese, in comparison with 37% (1,150 folks) in 2023 and 4% (150 people) in 2021.

The development is confirmed in 2025 for these nationals, in accordance with Ofpra, even when the figures are nonetheless tough to ascertain because of the devastating passage of Cyclone Chido in December 2024. These asylum requests from the Congolese are most frequently linked to the battle within the east of the nation.

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