According to a report in the Financial Times, the EU's communication proposes to spend US$9.8 billion over the next four years to help African countries cope with the migration crisis and the readmission of economic migrants who have been refused asylum in EU countries.
EU leaders held a summit in Malta with African leaders in November 2015, in an attempt to convince foreign nations to take back migrants and stop them from arriving in the first place.
Dimitris Avramopoulos, EU Commissioner for Migration, told reporters at the time that the purpose of the summit in Malta was to "enhance collaboration" with African countries with the aim of protecting refugees from people smugglers.
We do not buy dignity and humanity. United in our cooperation with third countries. #JHA https://t.co/qDAXR0m9yE pic.twitter.com/KDJCwt8jfz
— DimitrisAvramopoulos (@Avramopoulos) May 20, 2016
However six months later, Europe remains gripped in a refugee crisis.
Potentially striking a deal with African nations similar to the EU-Turkey deal has also led to concerns that the countries could capitalize on the migration crisis to blackmail money from the EU and that migration policy should not be linked with development aid programs.
Amid moves by the EU to shift its foreign policies to fit the migration crisis, Kenya has announced it will close the world's biggest refugee camp.
#dabaab #kenya — the biggest #refugee camp in the world via @UNrefugees. Photographer: @thomasmukoya pic.twitter.com/Lm9ArMdiv9”
— Nikolay Nikolov (@Nikolay_Nikolov) October 8, 2014
Kenya's Interior Minister Joseph Nkaissery says the Dadaab camp, which is home to more than 300,000 Somalis, will close in November 2016.
My statement on decision to shut Daadab R. camp will not change bcs it has become hosting ground for terrorists https://t.co/WZkJwRuASG
— Joseph Nkaisserry (@GenNkaisserry) May 11, 2016
The camp was set up in 1991 to house families feeling the conflict in Somalia, but Kenya says it has become increasingly concerned over the security of the camp, amid claims terrorist attacks have been planned there by al-Shabaab militants.
Press Statement of #AUPSC on #Kenya’s efforts fighting #AlShabaab and plan of relocating the #Dabaab #RefugeeCamp — http://t.co/MGImdRZu40
— African Union Peace (@AU_PSD) August 31, 2015
Raila Odinga, leader of Kenya's rival political group, Cord said: "You cannot bundle fellow human beings who ran away from their country because of insecurity into trucks and dump them in a country where lawlessness is still prevalent.
"If our own soldiers were massacred by al-Shabaab in El Adde, what will happen to civilians? They will be slaughtered like animals."
Farah Maalim, former deputiy speaker of the National Assembly of Kenya said the government is closing the camp because, "it is not happy with the UN's withdrawal of funding which used to be channeled through the state."
The details of the communication issued by the EU executive involving potential deals with African and Middle Eastern countries to stem the flow of migrants to Europe will be revealed on Tuesday 7 June.
More than 205,000 migrants have arrived in Europe so far this year, according to the United Nations refugee Agency (UNHCR). More than 2,500 have died trying.
