Brussels - The European Union (EU) and Mali have signed a deal that will help expedite the return of migrants to the north African country. The agreement covers a number of other areas including providing the funds to help job creation and assistance in fighting people smuggling to prvent Malians heading to the bloc. Worth 154 million euros (£ 129m), the deal has been brokered by Dutch Foreign Minister Bert Koenders and his Malian counterpart Abdoulaye Diop. Frontex, the EU border agency has estimated that more than 10,000 Malians have entered the EU since the start of 2015. Overall, the number of migrants using the route from Libya to Italy grew by 13 per cent, according to Frontex. Mr Koenders, 59, said it was the first time “such a precise mechanism with an African country with regards to returning failed asylum seekers” had been reached. Mali has particularly suffered from militant insurgency in the past with the al Qaeda-linked groups and Tuareg rebels seizing control of the north of the country in 2012.(ANA)

FA/ANA/13 December 2016-------