Since the start of the year, Italy has seen over 17,000 illegal immigrants arrive in its territory, a 28.5 per cent increase from the same period last year.
The figures represent migrants who have arrived in Italy on their own by boat as well as those who have been picked up by migrant taxi NGOs and those rescued by the Italian coastguard and other naval authorities since the start of the year.
Statistics from the Italian Interior Ministry noted that a total of 17,690 migrants have arrived in the country since the start of the year, nearly 4,000 more than in 2021, with May alone seeing 6,929 arrivals, according to a report from the newspaper Il Giornale.
In January, numbers nearly tripled compared to the prior year, however arrivals went on to decline in February and in March. According to the United Nations Refugee Agency, the UNHCR, illegal immigrant numbers have since surged after March.
Trends from past years have shown that the summer months have generally been the months in which the most illegal immigrants arrive in Italy, and if trends continue, the number of arrivals could be the largest since 2017, when 119,369 migrants arrived in the country.
Last year, the largest number of illegals were Tunisian nationals but in 2022 the largest share, 21 per cent, are originally from Egypt, followed by Bangladeshis, who make up 19 per cent of arrivals. Tunisians, now third amongst illegals, account for just 11.7 per cent.
The island of Lampedusa, which lies between Tunisia and Sicily, remains the most popular arrival point for most boat migrants, with nearly 150 migrants arriving over a single night this week.
The reception centre on the island is again overcrowded with an estimated 857 migrants staying at the centre as of Tuesday, despite it only being meant to accommodate 250 people.
Overcrowding has been a common occurrence on Lampedusa, with over 900 migrants staying at the facility last August, forcing some to sleep on mattresses outdoors regardless of the weather conditions on the island.