Côte d’Ivoire: 243 migrants repatriated from Tunisia – the painful journey of voluntary return
They had left in search of a better future, sometimes at the risk of their lives. They return empty-handed, but alive. This weekend, 243 Ivorian migrants were repatriated from Tunisia as part of a voluntary return operation coordinated by Ivorian and Tunisian authorities, with the support of the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
Among them were men, women, and children. All had been facing difficult living conditions in Tunisia, which in recent years has become a hub for migration toward Europe.
Arriving at Félix Houphouët-Boigny International Airport in Abidjan on a special flight chartered for the occasion, they first completed administrative and health formalities before being transferred to a reception center.
There, medical and psychological support awaited them, along with reintegration assistance before their return to their families.
Mamadou Sako, an official with the Directorate General of Ivorians Abroad (DGIE), who was present at the arrival of the flight, did not hide the reality: these voluntary returns are often difficult for the migrants involved.
The failure of the European dream leaves scars. Yet he insisted on a message of hope: opportunities also exist in Côte d’Ivoire, through training programs and employment prospects.
Convincing potential departees that their homeland can still offer something has become a national challenge.
Irregular departures continue to feed clandestine migration networks in several West African countries.
Faced with this scourge, Ivorian authorities are seeking to strengthen social and economic reintegration mechanisms for returning migrants.
The numbers illustrate the scale of the phenomenon: nearly 8,700 Ivorian migrants returned to their country between 2022 and 2025 with IOM support.
Tunisia, for its part, is regularly criticized by human rights organizations over the living conditions of sub-Saharan migrants on its territory.
Several African countries have accelerated voluntary repatriation operations for their nationals stranded there in recent months.
Côte d’Ivoire is doing the same, with a humane approach: save its children, then help them rebuild here. The road is long, but it is the path of dignity.
Papa IBRAHIMA
