Europe — Mixed Migration Flows to Europe, Quarterly Overview (April - June 2021)

In Q2 of 2021, a total of 35,338 of migrants and refugees were registered arriving through the three Mediterranean routes and the Western African Atlantic route to Europe, which is more than 3 times higher than the 10,334 arrivals registered in the same period in 2020, and 56 per cent more than the 22,626 registered in Q2 of 2019. Arrivals in Q2 of 2021 almost doubled compared to the previous reporting period (18,137 in Q1 2021). This significant increase somewhat coincides with the end of winter conditions at sea during the first months of the year.
Around (45%) of all registered individuals in Q2 of 2021 arrived in Europe through the Western Mediterranean and Western African Atlantic routes (15,948) to Spain. Another 38 per cent reached Italy and Malta through Central Mediterranean route (13,299) and the remaining 17 per cent travelled through the Eastern Mediterranean route to Greece, Cyprus and Bulgaria (6,091).
Compared to Q2 of 2020, arrivals have increased in absolute numbers in all routes to Europe, but with important differences among them. The share of arrivals to Spain via the Western Mediterranean (WMR) and Western African Atlantic routes (WAAR) has increased from 30 to 45 per cent of all registered arrivals, while the share of arrivals via the Central Mediterranean route (CMR) decreased from 46 to 38 per cent of the total and the share of arrivals through the Eastern Mediterranean route (EMR) has plummeted from 25 to 17 per cent of arrivals between Q2 in 2020 and Q2 in 2021.