Senegal's Children Mourn in Silence for Migrant Parents Lost at Sea | World of Africa | WION

Added: 2026-05-27

[00:00:00]In the port city of M'bour in western Senegal, many children's lives are shattered by illegal migration known as those who remain, the children of Senegalese migrants lost at sea, are forced to live with the unbearable suspense or impossible pain of knowing a parent has either died or gone missing after their boat disappeared.

[00:00:23]The number of dead, missing, and their children is at least in the thousands, though they apply remains a taboo in their home country where migration is discouraged by the authorities.

[00:00:43]>> [music] [music] >> Young Sokna recounts the many nightmares she has had following her father's disappearance.

[00:01:00]For the children of Senegalese migrants lost at sea, the torment of grief is long-lasting.

[00:01:10]>> [music] >> Known as those who remain, the young bereaved are forced to live with the unbearable suspense or impossible pain of knowing a parent has either died or gone missing after their boat disappeared.

[00:01:26]The number of such dead, missing, and their children is at least in the thousands in Senegal as of recent years.

[00:01:37]One day my dad told us that he wanted to go to Spain. He asked my brother and me our opinion. I said to him, "Dad, don't go. Don't leave me alone. I've only got you and Mom." And at the time, my mom was in hospital. My dad replied, "Let me leave. When I make lots of money, I'll be able to take good care of you, and I'll help my own dad who's really ill and who I can't afford to care for.

[00:02:01]In Senegal's western port city of M'bour, the shattered lives and heartfelt dramas of such children are often kept in the shadows [music] or swept under the rug due to the taboo nature of their parents' decision to leave.

[00:02:15]Crowded onto colorful wooden boats known as pirogues, which frequently hold more than 100 people, the migrants risk life and limb to make it aboard, generally to Spain's Canary Islands.

[00:02:29]Families are also afraid to share the children's stories [music] due to the authorities' often repressive approach, which includes arresting smugglers and rescuing boats whether or not they want [music] to come back.

[00:02:42]I've been through huge difficulties since my husband died. I was thrown out of the room where I was living with people telling me the house belonged to my father-in-law and not to my husband.

[00:02:54]Now I rent a room and sometimes I end up 3 months behind on the rent without being able to pay because the little money I earn barely covers lunch and sometimes I can't even manage that.

[00:03:13]In 2024, at least 10,457 migrants died or disappeared >> [music] >> while trying to reach Spain via the perilous Atlantic route, according to Caminando from Terras, the highest number recorded since the organization began counting [music] in 2007.

[00:03:31]Those fleeing Senegal are driven [music] by despair and the lack of opportunity, with unemployment, a depleted fishing stock, and [music] other factors creating a dire situation.

[00:03:43]In addition, Europe's restrictive visa policies and increased border patrols have caused migrants to resort to clandestine and rickety boats.

[00:03:54]It's not worth it.

[00:03:57]When I have to chip in to do things with my friends, I ask my mom, but she tells me she has no money while my friends get some from their dads. That's why I go to work when I'm not at school to help my mom.

[00:04:09]Breaking the silence is the goal of a pioneering program in Senegal, providing psychosocial support to these children, launched in 2024.

[00:04:19]Around 50 orphans are being supported by the Senegalese chapter of the diocesan delegation of migration, an international NGO, which began the project after noticing the suffering of wives of missing persons.

[00:04:33]Mothers find it hard to explain to their children that their father is missing or that he took a pirogue. So, what they do is they tend to hide the truth to tell the child that your dad went on a trip or he's coming back one day. And I think that means the children are in a kind of invisible morning.

[00:04:50]Apart from the work carried out at its M'bour base, the NGO conducts three other tours a year in other regions of Senegal and provides in-home support.

[00:05:01]Africa Bureau, WION, World is One.

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