The EU allocates 210 million to turn Mauritania into a barrier for irregular emigration to the Canary Islands. The instability of the Sahel and the political crisis in Senegal, which has lasted three years, place this country as the new strategic ally for migration control on the Atlantic route.

At least 70,000 people have crossed the border from Mali since last October, according to sources from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), bringing the number of asylum seekers on Mauritanian soil to more than 150,000.