Britain's government department for migration and security is hiring Albanian celebrities to persuade their countrymen against illegal travel to Britain. The department will pay influencers to post content on TikTok asking migrants not to cross the English Channel in small boats.
Social media influencers in countries with the highest numbers of migrants crossing illegally into the UK will be offered thousands of pounds to publicize new migration laws, including the threat of deportation in Rwanda, The Times has reported.
The massive campaign will take place in Albania, Iraq, Egypt and Vietnam, with plans to be presented in Turkey and India as well.
A list with names of influencers has been created in Albania and it includes a rapper, two comedians, "bloggers", television personalities, etc.
The department has a budget of around £30,000 to pay Albanian influencers, who have been selected for their ability to appeal to young people. 5,000 pounds will be allocated per person.
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The rapper known as Omg Dioh, who has over 100,000 followers on TikTok, was chosen as a suitable candidate because he "uses the platform to influence and educate young people to work hard and follow their passion".
Another influencer is Roxhi Dibrani, the comedian with 150,000 followers, who has "a strong northern dialect, which can help him spread messages more easily to young people located in our target regions".
Fabio Daja, with 109,000 followers, is described as a "lifestyle influencer" who "actively shares his thoughts in an upbeat way".
The early success of such campaigns is unclear. Research seen by British media The Independent said the government department paid Meta at least £35,000 for hundreds of Facebook and Instagram ads shown to people in northern France and Belgium between January 2021 and September 2022.
Some of them reached less than 1,000 people and others over a million, but the Government had no way of seeing who they were reaching with those ads, so according to Professor Ben Collier of the University of Edinburgh, the Government was just throwing out ads. across social networking sites and was seeing what was attracting the most from the audience.
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A preliminary investigation by The Independent in 2022 also found that the Government had paid £2.7m to Hong Kong-based firm Seefar since 2016, which "campaigns to raise awareness of migration and change". of behaviour', including a controversial government website where ministers sought to curb illegal migration.
More than 100,000 people have crossed the Channel in small boats since 2018 – when this previously rarely used route to enter Britain began to see large numbers of people trying to cross. At least 64 people are thought to have drowned.
While such arrivals fell by more than a third in 2023, almost 30,000 people entered Britain via that route, making it the second year with the highest number of illegal crossings, despite the Government making it a criminal offense crossings and that it is continuing with its failed prevention plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda.
"People smugglers often use social media to spread lies and promote their criminal activities, and it is vital that we use the same platforms to inform migrants of the truth about crossing the Channel and coming illegally to Great Britain", said a spokesman for the Department for Migration and Security.
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"The unstoppable actions we have taken have reduced illegal crossings by 36% last year... We make no apologies for taking every measure necessary to stop ships and save lives."
Prepared by: Emine Shehu
