SOLUTIONS NEEDED: MANY YOUTHS ARE BACK FROM IRREGULAR MIGRATION: WHAT NEXT?

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Minds are focused on the number of young people who are risking their lives in the search for greener pastures elsewhere. However, thousands of them are back and no one is approaching them to guide them on how they can live in The Gambia without seeing any need to embark on irregular migration to the western world.

A preventive strategy is urgently needed. Foroyaa is approached by a youth who is among the first to be deported from Sweden. Since his arrival, he is still searching for avenue to get financial resources to settle down for business. Lecturing young people on the peril associated with sailing across the ocean without providing them with an alternative is counterproductive. Schemes that are designed to assist them are generally unknown. It is urgent to offer proper direction of where young people can go to in order to get counseling and support if the issue of the irregular migration is to be effectively addressed.