Migration Routes Grow Deadlier Despite Sharp Drop in Arrivals – IOM

By: Michael Mike

Migrant journeys have become significantly deadlier in several major migration corridors despite a sharp decline in the number of people arriving in Europe, according to new data released by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM).

IOM’s Global Overview of Migration Routes (January–April 2026) found that deaths and disappearances along the Central Mediterranean Route more than doubled during the first four months of 2026 compared with the same period last year.

A total of 821 migrants died or went missing along the route, representing a 111 per cent increase, while arrivals fell by 46 per cent to 8,577.

More than half of the deaths — 430 — were recorded in January, when Cyclone Harry struck the region.

The situation was also significantly worse along the Eastern Mediterranean Route, where 244 people died, an increase of 259 per cent. IOM said many of the deaths were linked to sea crossings that ended in disasters near Crete.

“Fewer arrivals do not mean safer journeys,” IOM Deputy Director General Ugochi Daniels said, stressing that saving lives at sea and on land remains a shared responsibility.

The Western African Atlantic Route recorded the steepest decline in arrivals to Europe, with arrivals in Spain falling by 78 per cent to 2,276. IOM said departure points have shifted further south along the West African coast, resulting in longer and more dangerous sea journeys.

However, migration increased on some routes. Arrivals in Spain through the Western Mediterranean Route rose by 66 per cent to 5,647, largely due to a threefold increase in land crossings into Ceuta and Melilla.

Along the Horn of Africa Eastern Route, arrivals in Yemen increased by 9 per cent to 70,200, consistent with seasonal migration patterns.

In contrast, northbound migration through Panama’s Darién region almost came to a halt, with only 135 transits recorded during the reporting period.

IOM also reported that the escalation of hostilities in the Middle East from late February affected migration and displacement patterns. Large-scale displacement was recorded in Lebanon, while cross-border returns to Syria increased during March and April. Labour migration and remittance flows across South Asia, the Middle East and Africa also came under pressure.

Daniels noted that migration is not limited to movement towards Europe, pointing out that nearly half of the world’s 304 million international migrants live within their own regions, moving for employment, family, education and safety.

The IOM report draws on data from the organisation’s Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM), Missing Migrants Project, Regional Data Hubs and government partners to provide an overview of migration trends across major routes between January and April 2026.

The findings underscore a growing concern among migration experts: a reduction in migrant arrivals does not necessarily indicate safer migration. In some cases, it may mean that journeys have become longer, more clandestine and more dangerous.

Migration Routes Grow Deadlier Despite Sharp Drop in Arrivals – IOM

ECOWAS Targets $294bn Climate Finance Gap, Moves to Unlock West Africa’s Carbon Market Potential

By: Michael Mike

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has stepped up efforts to establish a regional carbon market platform as the bloc seeks to bridge a $294 billion climate-finance gap and unlock West Africa’s vast potential in international carbon markets.

The move took centre stage in Abuja on Wednesday at a three-day regional workshop convened to validate the framework for establishing the platform, bringing together representatives of ECOWAS Member States, regional and international organisations, technical and financial partners and climate experts.

Speaking on behalf of the ECOWAS Commission leadership, a representative of the Commission, the Director for Environment and Natural Resources, Mr. Christophe Deguenon, conveyed greetings from the President of the ECOWAS Commission, Omar Alieu Touray, and the Commissioner for Economic Affairs and Agriculture, Kalilou Sylla, while expressing appreciation to Nigeria for its continued support for regional climate initiatives.

The ECOWAS representative said the urgency of the initiative was underscored by the growing vulnerability of West Africa to climate change, warning that rising temperatures, climate-induced displacement and environmental degradation were threatening livelihoods and economic development across the region.

According to the ECOWAS presentation, temperatures in West Africa could rise by between 1.5°C and 3°C by 2050, based on projections by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

The World Bank, it added, estimates that nearly 32 million people could be forced into internal displacement as a result of climate impacts.

The representative noted that, in response to the crisis and the global goal of limiting temperature increases to 1.5°C, ECOWAS Member States had adopted Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), progressively increasing their climate-mitigation ambitions through successive reporting cycles.

But as national ambitions increase, so too does the amount of financing required to implement them.

The ECOWAS representative disclosed that the bloc’s Regional Strategy for Access to and Mobilization of Climate Finance, adopted in 2022, had estimated the region’s financing requirements at $294 billion, based on conditional needs contained in the Member States’ second-generation NDCs.

“Four years later, with the submission of NDCs 3.0, these needs have significantly increased,” the representative said, attributing the rise to stronger national climate ambitions and the growing urgency to mobilise climate finance at scale.

The regional climate-finance strategy had identified the establishment of a regional framework for the operationalisation of Article 6 of the Paris Agreement as one avenue for addressing the financing deficit.

The ECOWAS representative said the framework would help West African countries leverage their enormous environmental assets through carbon markets and attract additional resources for climate action.

West Africa, according to the Commission, possesses significant natural capital capable of generating high-integrity environmental and social carbon credits.

This includes more than 350 million hectares of agricultural land, major forest blocks and mangrove ecosystems, as well as enormous opportunities for restoring degraded landscapes.

The Commission, however, acknowledged that the region has yet to fully exploit these opportunities.

Despite its considerable carbon-market potential, West Africa remains insufficiently active in international carbon markets, with regulatory weaknesses, limited technical capacity, inadequate tracking systems and certification challenges continuing to constrain participation.

It was against this backdrop that the ECOWAS Commission launched an ambitious regional process in 2024 to develop a harmonised framework for establishing a regional carbon market platform.

The initiative is aligned with the ECOWAS Vision 2050 and the African Union’s Agenda 2063.

The proposed platform will be built around four key principles: transparency, environmental integrity, inclusive governance and the valuation of Member States’ climate efforts.

Meanwhile, in his opening remarks, Nigeria’s Minister of Environment, Balarabe Lawal, said the regional initiative was both timely and strategic, stressing that climate change posed serious threats to the economies, ecosystems, food security and livelihoods of West Africans.

Lawal, who was represent by a director in the ministry, Mrs. Iniagbon Abiola-Awe, said Nigeria was committed to working with ECOWAS, Member States and development partners to transform the proposed platform into a practical mechanism capable of delivering tangible benefits to the region.

He disclosed that Nigeria had launched its Carbon Market Framework at COP30, while its national carbon-market registry was under development.

The minister said a regional platform would complement national initiatives by enabling Member States to share information, facilitate peer-to-peer learning and showcase the carbon-market potential of West Africa.

According to him, a well-designed regional carbon market could help Member States attract climate investment, promote nature-based solutions, increase private-sector participation and create green jobs.

The Abuja workshop is expected to subject the draft regional framework to rigorous technical and legal scrutiny before its adoption.

The ECOWAS representative challenged experts and Member States to use the three-day exercise to strengthen the document and establish a credible mechanism capable of attracting investors and supporting national climate ambitions.

The representative disclosed that the draft framework was developed by consulting firm AETS, with support from partners including BDO Carbon and S&P Global, among others.

The Commission also acknowledged contributions made during carbon-market engagements in Paris and at the UN climate conferences in Dubai and Baku.

The regional platform, the ECOWAS representative stressed, should not be viewed merely as another institutional mechanism but as an instrument of regional cooperation.

It is expected to facilitate the pooling of expertise and experience, reduce transaction costs, strengthen the capacity of Member States and improve West Africa’s visibility in international carbon markets.

The Commission called on participants to prioritise dialogue, consensus-building and the broader interests of the region as they deliberate on the framework.

The ECOWAS representative expressed confidence that the workshop would produce a “solid, consensual and sufficiently ambitious” regional framework capable of ushering in a new era of climate finance in West Africa.

For Nigeria, the initiative represents an opportunity to position the region not merely as a victim of climate change but as a significant participant in the emerging global carbon economy.

The workshop is expected to culminate in the validation of the framework, incorporation of technical and legal recommendations, approval of governance arrangements and adoption of a regional implementation roadmap.

ECOWAS Targets $294bn Climate Finance Gap, Moves to Unlock West Africa’s Carbon Market Potential

NHRC Demands Immediate Suspension, Arrest of Senator Fadahunsi Over Alleged Kill Order

By: Michael Mike

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has called for the immediate suspension and arrest of Senator Francis Fadahunsi, representing Osun East Senatorial District, over alleged inflammatory remarks in a viral video ahead of the August 15, 2026 Osun governorship election.

The Commission, led by the Executive Secretary, Chief Tony Ojukwu, said the remarks attributed to Fadahunsi amounted to incitement to murder, electoral violence and voter intimidation.

According to the NHRC, the senator allegedly instructed supporters to kill members of the Accord Party whenever they encountered them and warned that Accord members should not be allowed to vote, even if they possessed voter cards.

Ojukwu described the alleged statement as “a licence to kill”, warning that authorities must act before violence occurs.

“This is not politics. This is a licence to kill. A public officer who tells citizens to murder other citizens because of party affiliation must not be allowed to remain in office for one more day,” Ojukwu said.

The NHRC called on the Senate leadership to suspend Fadahunsi immediately, pending investigation, while urging the Police and DSS to arrest, investigate and prosecute him in accordance with the law.

The Commission also directed political party chairmen to instruct their members to refrain from hateful, inciting, intimidating or violent statements ahead of elections. It said candidates or party supporters who violate such directives should be reported to law enforcement for prosecution.

The NHRC urged residents of Osun State to remain peaceful and report threats to the appropriate authorities. It said it has established a situation room to document and respond to human-rights and electoral incidents during the election period.

The allegations against Senator Fadahunsi require urgent investigation and due process, particularly given the seriousness of the alleged call for violence.

NHRC Demands Immediate Suspension, Arrest of Senator Fadahunsi Over Alleged Kill Order