ZAGREB, 12 April 2022 - The number of illegal migrants trying to enter Croatia from Una-Sava Canton in the west of Bosnia and Herzegovina has been steadily decreasing as migrants have been looking for other routes to reach EU countries, according to estimates by government bodies and local police in west Bosnia.
According to police data, there are currently slightly more than 2,800 illegal migrants in that part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and they are mostly from African and Asian countries.
Around 850 of them are accommodated in three reception centres and slightly more than 1,800 are staying in makeshift accommodation in Bihać, Cazin and Velika Kladuša or in illegal camps along the border with Croatia.
UNA-Sana Canton ministry of the interior spokesman Adnan Beganović has confirmed to the Banja Luka-based Nezavisne Novine paper that local police still control roads leading to that part of the country to prevent the arrival of new migrants.
He said that that way in 2021 police prevented the arrival of around 17,000 migrants, which is why the number of those trying to reach Croatia along that route has been declining.
"Currently the number of migrants leaving Una-Sana Canton is higher than the number of migrants arriving here. Those who do not manage to cross the border into Croatia are returning to Sarajevo or Serbia and looking for another route to reach Western European countries," Beganović said.
