The annual World Press Photo competition often produces painful stories. In the category Contemporary Issues, French photographer Olivier Jobard, working for Sipa Press, won this year’s first prize with a series of images of Africans desperately trying to find a way to a better life in Europe. The photos were published in Paris Match.

The short distance across the sea from northern Africa to mainland Spain or the Canary Islands is a popular route for clandestine immigrants looking for a better life in Europe. Kingsley, a 22-year-old Cameroonian, was one who attempted the passage.

In his hometown, Kingsley earned just US$ 30 a month as a lifeguard at a hotel. He had already tried to reach Europe once before, in 2002, but turned back in Nigeria having run out of funds. On his second attempt he managed to raise the more than US$ 1,000 required to pay for the trip, for smuggler fees, and to finance his first weeks in Europe.

Full gallery World Press Photo home International Photojournalism Festival Perpignan