“We rely on the sea but there is nothing left in this sea.”

In Senegal, rising sea temperatures and years of overfishing have depleted the country’s stocks of fish which are crucial to the economy and the population’s diet. A third of the country lives in poverty, and even with an education, it’s difficult for many to find sustainable jobs.

That’s why Djiby, a Senegalese man, told ABC News that he saw no other choice but to embark on a small wooden boat called a pirogue, hoping to reach Spain’s Canary Islands via the Atlantic.

“I’m going to Spain to support my family," he told ABC News before he set out for his journey.

The Canary Islands are roughly a thousand miles away from the shorelines of Senegal. It’s also one of the most used routes by migrants hoping to reach Europe, according to international migration experts. But the journey across the water is dangerous, and at worse, deadly.