The Frontex annual report states that 239,000 people entered the EU illegally, representing a decrease of 38% compared to 2023, mainly as a result of fewer arrivals via the Central Mediterranean and the Western Balkan routes.

‘’In spite of continued migratory pressures, the increased cooperation between the EU and its partners in the fight against networks of smugglers led to a significant decrease in border crossings at Europe's external borders,‘’ Frontex stated in a press release quoted by the French Press Agency (AFP).

Controlled irregular entries to the Mediterranean decreased by 59%, with ‘’less departures from Tunisia and Libya‘’, while illegal border crossing attempts increased by 14% on the eastern Mediterranean route, reaching an estimated 69,400 attempts, mostly through new routes from eastern Libya. There was also an 18% increase in the number of migrants taking the West African route towards the Canary Islands, reaching an estimated 47,000 people, as a result of an increase in the number of departures from Mauritania’, adds the report.

Crossings by sea, which are generally organised by organised crime networks, remain an extremely dangerous option for migrants. The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) has estimated that 2,300 people lost their lives by sea in 2024 alone, emphasising the tragic human cost of these perilous routes.