The tiny island nation of Malta, located in the waters between North Africa and Italy, has been burdened by an disproportionate number of migrants for the past decade.
With a population of only 400,000 people, Malta receives an average of 1,470 migrants by boat per year—proportionally, that is over six times greater than France, which received the largest numbers of migrants in the European Union in 2011. The number of undocumented migrants has increased since Malta joined the EU in 2004.
Forced to adapt, Malta’s processing system has become one of the fastest growing in Europe. Fifty-eight percent of migrants receive some form of protected status, which is higher than the EU average.
About 15,000 migrants made it to Malta’s shores since 2002 many by accident while trying to reach Italy’s Lampedusa island. After Somalis, the second largest group comes from Eritrea. Others come from Ethiopia, Egypt, the Ivory Coast, Ghana, Sudan and Nigeria.
Virtually all migrants are detained upon arrival, even children, who, as long as they look older than 12 or 14 years old, will be held in detention until their age is determined. Malta has a policy of mandatory detention for any “prohibited immigrant,” which includes anyone arriving without “right of entry.”
