Photo credit: Al Finar Media
Behind every migration number there is a human story. Someone leaves their country in search of a job or a safer life, leaving a family waiting for their return.
Al-Fanar Media reports that sometimes, a person’s family may never know whether their loved ones will come home or remain among the missing. Reports show the large number of people who die or go missing during migration, but the exact numbers remain unknown.
A group of students from the Digital Egypt Youth Initiative for Communications decided to examine the issue from a different perspective. What could data reveal about these journets? Could statistics help explain the causes and risks of migration?
Such questions inspired “Illegal Migration Analysis in Africa,” an interactive dashboard presenting data and statistics on African migration from 2017 to 2025. It shows the numbers of migrants, deaths, missing people and survivors, as well as the reasons that drive people to undertake these journeys.
The Egyptian Ministry of Communications and Information Technology run the Digital Egypt Initiative training program to give young Egyptians technological and digital transformation skills. They target students who have graduated in the last five years.
The students say they chose irregular migration to draw attention to an issue they believe does not receive enough attention – the growing numbers of dead and missing migrants. They also wanted to highlight the circumstances that drive people to leave their countries in search of employment and a decent life to encourage the authorities to address the underlying causes.
