For the first trip of his papacy, Pope Francis decided to travel to a small island off the coast of southern Italy known as Lampedusa. This visit marked what would become one of the major social issues addressed in his pontificate: migrants and their situation in refugee camps.
10 years later, migration continues to be one of the world's most challenging social issues and the numbers have not declined.
FILIPPO GRANDI
We have 110 million people that have fled because of conflict, persecution, discrimination, violence, often mixed with other motives, in particular the impact of climate change.
In 2022, nearly 2,400 people died in the Mediterranean in an attempt to reach Europe, the highest number since 2017. The International Organization for Migration explains that the deadliest route is the one from countries such as Libya or Tunisia to Italy or Malta.
The United Nations says it is difficult to find solutions to this problem that affects the entire world.
FILIPPO GRANDI
Solutions to these movements are increasingly difficult to even imagine or even put on the table.
The Missing Migrants Project has documented the deaths of nearly 57,000 people since 2014, with Europe being the continent with the highest number of 27,000.
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