By Sinan Dogan
BOGOTA, Colombia (AA) - Panama pledged Friday to enhance measures to address rising migrant crossings through the Darien Gap region which links the country to Colombia, according to an official.
The head of the National Migration Service, Samira Gozaine, said at a news conference that Irregular migrants entering Panama through illegal means will be sent back to their countries.
Crossings through the Darien Gap have reached alarming levels and controls on migrants will be tightened, said Gozaine.
She said Panama has become a migration corridor for those wanting to reach the US. "Within our means and budget, we will implement new measures, including deporting those who enter the country illegally. Since April, we have deported 452 individuals," she said.
Official data shows that despite warnings that illegal migrants will be deported if they manage to reach the US, more than 348,000 irregular migrants crossed the Darien Gap into Panama in 2023.
In April, the UN warned that the number of migrants attempting to pass through the Darien Gap could reach 400,000 in 2023.
The Darien Gap is a transit point for migrants escaping poverty and widespread violence, expecting to find better opportunities in North America but who frequently find death in the mountains, swamps, rivers and precipitous ravines of the lawless jungle.
Panama receives travelers at migration stations located near its southern border with Colombia and the northern border with Costa Rica, where they are offered health care and food.