| Description |
The intensification of irregular African immigration in the Canary Islands resulted in the arrival of thousands of unaccompanied fo-reign minors (MENA in Spanish: Menores Extranjeros No Acompa-ñados), reaching a peak of maximum intensity in 2006 during the so-called “cayuco crisis”. This population of immigrants under the age of 18 is under the tutelage of the government of the Canary Islands and is placed in specific reception centers for foreign mi-nors (CAME in Spanish: Centro de Acogida para Menores Extran-jeros). The paper presents the methodology and main results of a research project, implemented by the author for the Observatory of Immigration in Tenerife (OBITen), about what these young Africans experienced when turned into Unaccompanied Foreign Minors by an administrative process whose aim is to protect them as vulne-rable persons.The project fieldwork included in-depth interviews with immigrant minors and experts. Additionally we carried out semi-structured interviews with professionals linked to the development and edu-cation of the unaccompanied foreign minors. We also organized focus groups with the resident Canary Islands population.The results we obtained reveal shortcomings in several areas: in the personal and emotional experience this process supposes for the migrants, in the area of administration and management and, particularly, concerning the transition from the condition of unac-companied foreign minor to the status of adult immigrant.
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