Reception centers for migrant minors in the Canary Islands are completely overwhelmed. Canoes carrying unaccompanied children and adolescents continue to arrive daily, while the islands alone endure a situation increasingly reminiscent of Lampedusa.
With more than 5.400 migrant minors under care on the islands and a collapsed reception network, the State has finally approved a law allowing these minors to be distributed to other autonomous communities. This law, which had been stalled for over a year, comes into effect in April and establishes a three-month deadline for transfers to begin. The situation was already unsustainable: the centers are at 150% capacity, and there is no space to continue caring for so many children and adolescents arriving by boat with dignity.
The law also includes a key change: from now on, if the Canary Islands are in a "migration contingency situation," new minors arriving must be transferred to another autonomous community within a maximum of 15 days. This isn't about shifting responsibilities, but rather about sharing the burden of an emergency that can no longer be limited to the islands. Despite everything, these minors will remain under protection, because no child can be left without guardianship.
In 2024, more than 39.000 migrants arrived in the Canary Islands, and in the first months of 2025 alone, more than 8.500 have already disembarked. Many of them are unaccompanied minors. The approved law could ease the pressure, but it comes too late and comes as a mere patch. The islands remain Europe's first southern border, but too often, like Lampedusa, they seem to be alone in facing the problem.
