It is no secret who suffers under a dehumanising and ruthless migration management system. It survives not by accident but by design; deliberately sustained by those who profit most from keeping this system intact.

Years of investigation has led us to a clear finding: there is a migration control industry, financed with public money that moves billions of euros a year into the hands of private companies.

This area of work is led by our investigative journalism team, operating within an international network. Our reporting has been published in several languages, earning global recognition and several investigative journalism awards. One investigation helped topple a corrupt government. Another exposed that the Spanish Secretary of State was lying about the events of the Melilla fence massacre.

All of these investigations have been funded exclusively by our donor’s contributions.

Through the development agency FIAP, the Spanish government is launching two migrant detention facilities that even include cribs, allowing authorities to hold minors. These centers, located in the Mauritanian cities of Nouakchott and Nouadhibou, are part of Spain and the European Union’s border-externalization strategy, which consists of outsourcing the repression of irregular migration flows to African regimes.

Externalisation (*) 2024

(*)Chaos, corruption and migration control under the guise of European cooperation

Morocco, Tunisia and Mauritius carry out raids to arrest thousands of Black people. After being incarcerated in migrant prisons with appalling conditions, the authorities of these three countries abandoned the detainees (including women and children) in remote desert areas. These clandestine operations are carried out with equipment, vehicles, training and funding from Spain, Italy and the European Union. We document and expose this humanitarian emergency in an investigation coordinated by Lighthouse Reports and also featuring The Washington Post, Der Spiegel, El País, Inkyfada and Le Monde, among others.

Spain and the European Union outsource to African regimes and governments to repress migratory flows. An investigation by porCausa and Al Jazeera reveals that the government of Senegal deployed units equipped and trained by Spain to violently suppress peaceful pro-democratic protests in that country. More than 60 people were killed in those demonstrations. No one has been prosecuted for these deaths.

El Confidencial and Fundación porCausa presented on July 15th, 2022 the special report “Fronteras SA: la industria del control migratorio” (Borders SA: the migration control industry).

Migration Control Industry (2020): Who are the paymasters?

Migration Control Industry (2020): Who takes the money?