The European Centre of Studies about Flows of Immigrants, with funding of the Vice-department of social affairs and employment of the Canary Islands Government and through the production company “Pantalla Canaria, S.L.”, directed this documentary about the African immigration in the Canary Islands, from the point of view of African people who get involved in the adventure of arriving to Europe over the nearest and most accessible point from their place of origin: the Canary Islands.

In a later stage, and thanks to the economic support received from the Institutional co-operation and International solidarity Department of the Gran Canaria council, and to the involvement of the audiovisual production company “Careli Records, S.L.”, the subtitles have been translated into several languages (English, French, Italian, Arabic and Catalan), with the purpose of broadcasting it also in West Africa, countries of the European Union and the Autonomous Community of Catalonia.

The intention of this documentary "Cayuco” is focused on information, awareness and the awareness-raising to the African and European public, immigrants' relatives and potential immigrants about the realities that people who get into the archipelago find arriving to the Islands, illegally.  We have also sought to give a contrast between the hopes before leaving the country of origin (of immigrants and their relatives) and the realities they must face up to.

We have before us a film documentary that bubbles with true in its images and voices, of the main actors of the history – the African immigrants in the Canary Islands – and the voices of their families in the place of origin, in their houses, in the country of the emigration: Africa.

The creation of forums and the improvement of the comprehension of the migratory phenomenon originating in Africa were possible thanks to the broadcast of the documentary. It also allowed the promotion of dialogue between social and academic actors related in the immigration and the native population and those who have immigrated. Consequently, all that contributes to encourage the solidarity to face up the relations of inequality.

It’s very interesting the spread of “Cayuco” in the broadcasting countries of emigration and in the countries where those migratory movements go to within the European Union, so much that pretends to expand the work camp of his messages.

Once the documentary has obtained a wide spreading in several autonomous regions (principally in the Canary Islands, Andalusia, Valencia and Extremadura) it was urgent to broadcast it in Catalonia, where the foreign population is very important (with 1.103.790 foreigners registered in the beginning of the year 2008). It’s also important to broadcast it in other countries of the European Union affected by the arrival of African immigration – mainly Italy – and in the occidental regions of Africa where most of these migratory processes are from.

As regards Italy, it seems superfluous to warn that there is a serious concern of the NGO’s involved in the domain of the immigration for the xenophobe attitude attached in several sectors of the society, egged on the orientation of several government measures taken recently.