Madrid’s radically different approach to African migration

Spain begins against the prevailing political mood among Western nations when it comes to migration and policies against the African continent.

At a time when the United States, the United Kingdom, France and Germany are reducing their developmental budgets, Madrid remains committed to continuing the expansion, albeit from a shorter starting point.

This week, the Spanish capital hosts Africa -supported “World Conference on African descent”. Afromadrid2025 will discuss restoration justice and the creation of a new development fund.

This is only the latest sign of how the Government, led by Spain, seeks to deepen and diversify its commitment to the continent and close to a neighbor, which is just a few kilometers south, through the Gibraltar Strait.

In July, the Minister of Employment, Jose Manuel Albares, launched a new Advisory Board of prominent intellectual, diplomatic and cultural figures, more than half of them African to monitor the provision of a detailed strategy for Spain-Africa, which his government published late last year.

New embassies south of Sahara and are planned to partnerships in business and education.

The contrast between the approach of Spain and that of others in the West is not only in the cost, but in tone and thinking – and nowhere more than in working with migration.

Like other places in Europe, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez is looking for ways to manage the influx of irregular arrivals.

Like other leaders in the center and central right, he is facing a selective challenge from the radical right, largely led by the concern of some voters about migration, with the VOX solid party well established in parliament and routinely ranked third in public opinion studies.

In July, additional security forces against racist thugs, who roam the streets of Torre Pacheko, in the Murcia region – where many Africans work in the boom gardening sector – after three Moroccans were accused of residing a pensioner, had to be placed.

While the opposition Conservative People’s Party remains favorable for some immigration, but for cultural reasons he wants to prioritize Latinos than Africans, VOX is more radical.

In response to the incident with Murcia, VOX called for repression against immigrants holding less qualified jobs. The message is largely aimed at Africans working in the production of fruits and vegetables, now so decisive for the southern Spanish economy.

But for the government, migration is challenges that are as practical as political.

More than 45,000 people made the dangerous maritime crossing from the west coast of Africa to the Spanish Archipelago of the Canary Islands last year. Estimates of those who have died while making attempts range between 1,400 and stunning 10 460.

Others make a shorter trip through the Gibraltar Strait or the Mediterranean to land on Andalusian beaches or try to overcome the border fences of Seut and Melila, the two Spanish cities of the North African coast.

The Spanish administration must accommodate new arrivals, process its claims and manage its absorption in a broader society, whether it is temporary or longer.

However, in the language significantly different from hostile communications, stemming from many European capitals, the Sanchez government has openly recognizes heavy economic realities on the spot in West Africa, which push people to risk their lives in their efforts to reach Europe.

And he tries to go beyond just saying no to new arrivals. Instead, she develops creative alternatives with a promise to promote the movements of people who are safe, arranged and regular and “mutually beneficial”.

During his trip to Mauritania last year, Sanchez emphasized the contribution that migrants make for the Spanish economy.

“For us, the migration phenomenon is not only a matter of moral principles, solidarity and dignity, but also of rationality,” the prime minister said.

The Spanish government is funding training schemes for unemployed young people in countries such as Senegal, especially for irregular migrants who have been sent back to help them develop a viable new livelihood back at home.

And she has expanded a circular migration program that gives West Africans short -term visas to come to Spain for limited periods of seasonal work, mainly in agriculture and then return.

These questions were at the heart of the agenda when Sanchez visited Senegal, Gambia and Mauritania last August.

A circular migration agreement with the first of 2021, but since then, similar ones have followed the Moorish and Gambian government.

The main case of this only approach was set out in detail in the Spain-Africa Strategy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This claims that Europe and Africa “are part of the same geopolitical space.”

But migration management is just one motive for the Spanish decision to focus on building relations with Africa-and it really supports a much broader social-cultural program.

The main prerequisite that underlies information information is that Spain, as the European country, closest to the continent, has a significant personal interest in Africa’s progress in inclusive and sustainable development and peace and security.

This basic justification may seem obvious.

Still, of course, the story had lowered Spain in a completely different path.

In addition to several Maghreb supports and a small tropical advance, today’s independent equatorial Guinea – its colonial expansion in the 16th and 17th centuries was directed mainly through the Atlantic Ocean.

In recent decades, European affairs and the Middle East have been willing to dominate Madrid’s foreign policy, while the main beneficiaries of his support for development were the countries of his huge former empire in Central and South America.

However, in the last few years, the Sanchez Government chair the main expansion of perspectives.

It was barely installed as a foreign minister in July 2021 than he began restructuring his department, partly to strengthen his commitment not only with Latin America, but also with Sahel and North Africa.

Confirmation of the broader geographical emphasis came with a development plan for 2024-27, which for the first time identified West Africa, including Sahel, as one of the three regions, priority for help, along with Central and South America.

The Spanish strategy in Africa put a heavy focus on economic sectors such as infrastructure, digitalization and energy transition, but also in particular to education and youth employment.

The cultural dimension includes not only the promotion of the Spanish language, with an advanced presence of the Cervantes Institute, but also programs to support the mobility of academic teachers and researchers.

Security cooperation, climate change actions, empowerment of women and extended diplomatic presence are surprising components in today’s environment.

However, the strategy also puts a lot of public stress, which puts on the support of democratic ideas, the African Union, and more in particular the West African Regional Organization Ecowas.

This will be welcome to the public encouragement for the latter, which is currently under intense pressure after seeing its 50th anniversary, eclipsed by the walk of the Sahal States-Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger-Chito ruling junios have refused to comply with his protocol on democracy and good governance.

In the meantime, in a message aimed at Madrid’s internal audience as its Subsahara partners, the Foreign Ministry said “supporting the African diaspora and the fight against racism and xenophobia are also key priorities.”

Fine words, of course, are just the first step. But in today’s acid international climate, this language really stands out.

Paul Meli is a consulting contributor to the Africa program in Chatham House in London.