MAPPING ISLAND OF LAMPEDUSA

Why in news?

Recently, Italy's government has launched a stringent crackdown on immigration in response to a growing crisis on the island of Lampedusa.

About Lampedusa

• Lampedusa is the largest island of the Italian Pelagie Islands in the Mediterranean Sea.
• The comune of Lampedusa e Linosa is part of the Sicilian province of Agrigento which also includes the smaller islands of Linosa and Lampione.
• It is the southernmost part of Italy and Italy's southernmost island.
• Tunisia, which is 113 kilometres (61 nautical miles) away, is the closest landfall to the islands.
• Sicily is farther at 205 kilometres, while Malta is 176 kilometres (95 nautical miles) east of Lampedusa.
• Lampedusa has an area of 20.2 km2 and a population of about 6,000 people.
• Its main industries are fishing, agriculture, and tourism. A ferry service links the island with Porto Empedocle, near Agrigento, Sicily.
• There are also year-round flights from Lampedusa Airport to Palermo and Catania on the Sicilian mainland.
• In the summer, there are many other seasonal links with the Italian mainland.
• In 2013, Spiaggia dei Conigli ("Rabbit Beach"), located in the southern part of the island, was voted the world's best beach by travel site TripAdvisor.
• Since the early 2000s, the island has become a primary European entry point for migrants, mainly coming from Libya and Tunisia.
• In 2021, the island received the Jan Karski Eagle Award, as the first and only time that the award was given out three times in a year.