The European Union is to open job centres in West Africa to advertise vacancies for people looking to work in Europe.

The plan aims to reduce illegal migration while helping European employers to fill gaps with temporary staff.

mployers will post vacancies on a database, while the job centres will help with visas, residence permits and travel plans. They centres will also advertise local vacancies. Workers offered jobs would be monitored to ensure they returned home after their contract was complete.

EU development commissioner Louis Michel says: “We are proposing to find realistic and humane solutions to migration problems.”

A pilot office will open in Mali this year, and others are planned for Senegal and Mauritania.

The scheme, which will cost £25m this year, will be paid from European Union and member states’ budgets.