Updated 12.00
An international summit on the refugee crisis begins today in Malta.
The two day meeting of EU and African leaders is aimed at improving co-operation on the migration issue.
Items on the agenda include the improvement of legal migration channels, protection of asylum seekers and measues to tackle people trafficking.
The summit will also look at how to address the root causes of the mass migration.
Ahead of the meeting, the President of the European Parliament Martin Schulz told Malta's parliament that European governments still aren't doing enough: "It's shameful that so far only about 120 refugees have been relocated from Greece and Italy in the light of the enormous challenge Europe is facing. This is really too little too late."
Speaking to the Maltese parliament ahead of the summit, European Council President Donald Tusk said the crisis "will challenge and change the EU as fundamentally as any treaty amendment, national election or monetary crisis".
He added that EU leaders must find a way of better managing the "intense migratory pressures".
African leaders will be offered incentives if they agree to do more to help refugees and migrants.
Those who are migrating to Europe come from countries including Eritrea, Niger, Ethiopia, Somalia, and Sudan. This year 1.2 million people entered the EU illegally.
The summit will revolve around five key discussions:
- Addressing the root causes of the crisis, such as conflict and poverty
- Improving legal migration channels
- Protecting vulnerable migrants and asylum seekers
- Tackling exploitation and trafficking
- Improving co-operation on returning migrants to their country of origin
In return for taking back people classified as economic migrants rather than refugees, Europe is poised to provide more money to help solve conflicts and poverty in Africa.
