4,510 illegally migrated to 4 EU countries

At least 4,510 Bangladeshis illegally reached Italy, Malta, Spain and Greece by sea and land last year.

According to the available data from Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM) Europe of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the highest share of Bangladeshis (4,141 or 92 percent) was registered in Italy.

At least 280 others reached Malta, 81 Spain and 8 Greece, IOM said.

Additionally, 8,844 Bangladeshis were tracked while transiting through the western Balkan countries during the same year.

"These are the figures of those who were registered after their arrival in the European countries or in transit, but there could be others who have evaded the registration process," said an IOM official in Dhaka.

For years, Libya has been a known route for Bangladeshis and African and some Asian nationals who used the conflict-prone country as a transit for illegally migrating to Europe through the Mediterranean.

The other route has been through Iran and Turkey to Europe. Balkan countries have been recently discovered as another route.

According to the Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training of Bangladesh's Ministry of Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment, only 21 registered Bangladeshis migrated to the United Kingdom in 2020.