The head of the European Commission and the Spanish Prime Minister will visit Mauritania today to discuss illegal migration to Europe.
Ursula von der Leyen and Pedro Sánchez are expected to pledge 200 million euros ($215 million) in aid when they meet President Mohamed Ould Ghazouani in the capital Nouakchott, EU officials said.
Migration will dominate the debate in June’s European Parliament elections amid growing anti-immigration rhetoric from right-wing parties.
Mauritania’s strategic importance is growing amid mounting migratory pressures and growing instability in the Sahel region. Spain wants to support it and strengthen ties through the EU, a Spanish government source told reporters.
The number of migrants arriving illegally in Spain by sea rose by almost 300 per cent in January, with the vast majority arriving in the Canary Islands. Some 83 per cent of the dinghy boats reaching the archipelago set off from Mauritania, according to Spanish authorities.
This followed a record number of people trying to reach Europe last year via the Spanish archipelago off the African coast.
Spain has been stationing police officers in Mauritania since 2006, when a large influx of refugees forced a review of migration policy and a focus on providing financial and security assistance to the countries from which the boats depart.
Mauritania, home to fewer than five million people, suffers from widespread poverty and has struggled since 2012 with an influx of tens of thousands from neighbouring Mali.
