‘Try or die’ - how one man try to enter Canary Islands

Senegal farmer Mouhamed Oualy never enter sea before, but now e wan travel through sea - di kain wey don turn di Atlantic Ocean to mass grave.

"Di boat guys don call me - dem say make I get ready. I dey ask you to pray for me - di time don come," na so im tok.

BBC Africa Eye don get access to di secret world of migrants wey wan follow dangerous routes reach Europe through West Africa to Canary Islands for Spain.

And Oualy follow for migrants wey wan reach di island.

Di regional goment día don warn say wetin dey wait for pipo for di Island na system wey already dey "overwhelmed" and don reach "breaking point" - but dat one no fit stop Oualy from travel.

Dem full inside pirogue. Pirogue na traditional wood fishing canoe.

Oualy fit face days, or even weeks, and im dey at di mercy of one of di most unforgiving seas for world.

From Senegal, e go take like 1,000km (600 miles) to 2,000km on top open sea - depending on wia you from start your journey, e fit take 10 times dat distance for oda migrants wey dey cross di Mediterranean.

Dem go battle di ocean storms and strong sea currents, sometimes di migrants

water go finish and dem dey suffer serious motion sickness and intense fear.

For night, as darkness full evriwia, fear go wan kill pipo and dem go dey panic plus even dey dehydrated.

Far away from di coast, for Senegal eastern region of Tambacounda, Oualy pikin dem plus family members dey depend on di small money wey im bin dey make from farming.

Di 40 year old never see im pipo for almost one year, after im move go one city wey dey very close to di departure point along di water side.

For dia, im dey work as okada driver, and dey borrow money from friends to fit gada di $1,000 (£765) fee wey im go use enta one of di canoe wey dey go Canary Islands.

Unto say im dey fear say dem fit scam am, im don do agreement with di smugglers say im go pay di full money if di boat reach dia destination.

"Nobody sabi wetin fit happen to me for dis water. di evil spirits of di sea fit kill me," na so im tell BBC from di safe part of di beach.

"Di boat fit capsize, kill everyone. If you fall inside di water, wetin your hand fit hold? Di only possibility na death, but you gatz take di risk."

Dozens of boats don disappear wit hundreds of lives inside. Without proper navigation systems, some of dem dey go put head wia road no dey and some dey waka from Uganda all di way across di Atlantic, come land for di coast of Brazil.

If Oualy survive dis journey, im dey hope to make money to use take care of extended family, but im dey keep im plans secret to avoid to worry dem.

Even though Senegal record better economic performance during di last ten years, from 2010, more dan one third of di kontri still dey live in poverty, according to World Bank.

"I don do any job you fit imagine, but tins no work out. If you no get money, you no mata. Na me be dia only hope and I no get money," na so e tok.

Like Oualy, plenty migrants wey dey travel from dat side na from sub-Sahara Africa. Dem dey run from poverty and conflict, wey climate change cause.

Canary Islands don become main road for irregular migrants and refugees wey wan enter Europe, especially after Italy and Greece put measures to destroy oda routes wey bin dem dey from cross di Mediterranean from Libya and Tunisia.

Almost 40,000 land di island for 2023, di highest number inside thirty years.

Dis year already, more dan 30,800 don reach di tourist beaches. Dis na more dan double di number from di same period last year.

For exclusive interview wit BBC Africa Eye, Fernando Clavijo, president of di Canary Island goment say di emergency system situation dey "oversaturated", sea rescuers, police and Red Cross volunteers dey stretched beyond dia limits.

“Di consequences be say more pipo go die, we no go fit to help migrants as dem deserve," na so Clavijo explain.

"Right now, Europe don block di Mediterranean Sea, dis one mean say migrants dey now follow di Atlantic route wey dey more dangerous and brutal."

BBC tok to members of Spain Emergency Services wey no gree make we mention dia name, dem describe how di whole situation dey tire.

One tok say "workers no fit bear to witness deaths and devastation any longer."

For El Hierro, wey be di smallest Island dia, di number of migrants wey don land since di beginning of 2023 dey more dan double di number of local population to nearly 30,000.

Clavijo tok say di local pipo no fit use public buses sake of say dem dey use di buses carry migrants. Im add say dis kain tin fit cause xenophobia and create social unrest.

"We go need to take responsibility, from di European Union to di Spanish goment, unto say you no fit leave di Canary Islands to face di crisis alone"

For recent months, sake of how migrants dey arrive in dia numbers, national debate don dey occur for Spain over how to tackle irregular migration.

Canary Islands dey call for more aids to care for pipo wey dey arrive, especially children wey no get guardians.

Back for Senegal, di smugglers don call Oualy make e join oda migrants for one secret hideout. Now im fate dey dia hands.

"We plenty for here, house don full. Plenty pipo come from Mali and Guinea too. Dem dey take us 10 to 15 pipo with small boats till we reach di big boat, den we fit leave,"na wetin e tok.

To survive di long journey, Mr Oualy carrie few bottles of water and biscuits.

For di first two days, im bin dey sick always. E go stand up most of di time sake of lack of space, and sleep ontop sea water mixed with fuel.

If im run out of water, im go drink from di sea water.

Some pipo for di boat begin scream and dey fear. Di crew members tell di oda migrants make dem hold dem down, so dem no go fall overboard or push someone else inside water.

According to data from di United Nations Migration body (IOM), di Atlantic route dey gradually become di deadliest migrant journey for world.

For 2024, about 807 pipo die or disappear so far - dis na increase of 76% compared to di same period last year.

But di number of casualties fit go higher, sake of say dem no dey record fatal accidents for di route.

"Every 45 minutes, one migrant dey die as e dey try reach our beaches. Dis one mean say more trafficking mafias don dey become more powerful," Clavijo tok.

Di UN office on Drugs and Crime estimate say criminals dey make around $150m a year for dis route.

"Di mafias wey dey organise di trips don find out say di trips dey like drug trafficking, wey get little chance for anybody to detect dem," na so Lieutenant Antonio Fuentes tell BBC. Im from one unit wey dey tackle smugglers for Spain wey dem dey call Guardia Civil.

"For dem, migrants na just commodity. Dem dey carry migrants like dem dey carry drugs and weapons. Dem just be victims."

To better understand di criminals, BBC tok to one Senegalese smuggler wey dey organise boat trips - e no show im face.

"If you carry on big boat wey fit carry 200 to 300 pipo, and each of dem dey ready to pay around $500, na big money we dey tok about," na so e tok.

Wen BBC challenge am say wetin im dey do na crime, im no show remorse, e tell BBC say "na crime e be, anybody dem catch, dem send am go prison, but solution no dey.

You go see pipo inside di water wey don die, but di boats go dey go on."

For five days, BBC no hear from Oualy. Den, one evening, e call.

"Di motor dey heat up and di wind dey so strong, some of di fishermen suggest make we go Morocco. But di captain no gree. E say if we move slowly, we go reach Spain by 6am."

Oualy bin dey one day away from reaching Canary Islands wen di engine enter wahala - and plenty migrants wey don para, begin vex for di captain.

"Everyone begin argue, dey insult each oda. Di Captain vex and turn back to Senegal."

“Everyone start to argue and insult each oda. Di captain surrender come turn back to Senegal.”

Oualy survive di journey, but e sustain injury and get serious health problems from di journey.

E dey in constant pain and dey move slowly.

After one year wey im take plan di trip, Oualy don come back to square one - e don return back to im family and dey save money for anode passage.

"I wish I go go back and try again. Yes, honest to God, dat na my belief. Dat one beta for me. If I die, na God Choice.

If Oualy make am to Europe, e dey likely say e no go see im family again for years. If im die for sea. Dem no see am again forever.



Di boat wey carry Mouhamed Oualy and oda migrants surrounded by large waves on top open sea