The latest statistics from the fight against illegal immigration to Mayotte have just fallen. The number of migrant boats intercepted in 2024 fell by 25 % compared to 2023, and that of expulsion of foreigners by 21 %, according to an official assessment of the prefecture in the French archipelago of the Indian Ocean.
In 2024, 493 Kwassa-Kwassa, or 61 % of the makeshift boats detected, were intercepted, against 661 (79 %) in 2023, according to this document. Only 70 km separate Mayotte from the Comorian Island of Anjouan, from which the wooden boats are left for many candidates for emigration to France. In the 101st French department, 48 % of the population is of foreign nationality and 95 % of these foreigners are Comorians, according to INSEE.
19,262 people expelled in 2024
The border rewinds were also less numerous: in total, 19,262 people were expelled from Mayotte in 2024, after 24,467 in 2023, a drop of 21 %.
According to the prefecture, these decreased figures are explained by “several major episodes that have greatly disrupted operational activity throughout the year”. The state services first invoke the five weeks of general blocking in January and February 2024 when a collective of citizens, joined by residents, had organized roadblocks to protest against illegal immigration.
In addition, notes the prefecture, the passage of Cyclone Chido, on December 14, “mobilized state services on other urgent priorities”. At the same time, this meteorological phenomenon caused heavy damage on several interceptor boats and destroys certain surveillance radars used to identify the arrival of Kwassa-Kwassa.
Emmanuel Macron’s promise
To intensify the fight against illegal immigration, Emmanuel Macron promised, on a visit to Mayotte last April, the launch of an “iron wall” operation aimed at expelling at least 35,000 people per year from the territory. In this context, the French authorities plan to deploy more radars and interceptors, to organize the rise of the border police operational support group and to create cooperation with the countries of the region in order to set up “a waiting area for immigrants in an irregular situation”.
Our file on Mayotte
The Constitutional Council validated Thursday, a few reservations, the law of the government to “refound Mayotte”, which aims in particular to tighten the rules on immigration and to fight against informal housing in the poorest department in France.
