Around 40 people are missing after a migrant boat capsized off the Italian island of Lampedusa, the UN said on Friday.

The shipwreck took place on Thursday and at least one newborn baby is among those missing, said UNHCR representative to Italy Chiara Cardoletti.

The vessel left from Sfax in Tunisia and was carrying 46 migrants from Cameroon, Burkina Faso and Ivory Coast, said Flavio Di Giacomo, a spokesman for the UN migration agency IOM.

The boat capsized in strong winds and high waves, he said. “Some survivors were taken to Lampedusa and others were brought back to Tunisia”.

“Among those missing were seven women and a minor. The survivors are all adult men,” he added.

“We have noticed more arrivals of migrants from sub-Saharan Africa than Tunisians” via the Tunisian route since November, he said.

He explained this was due to people from sub-Saharan Africa fleeing discrimination in Tunisia.

“It is unacceptable to continue counting the dead at the gates of Europe”, Cardoletti said.

The southern Italian island of Lampedusa is one of the main entry points for migrants crossing the Mediterranean. Last year, more than 46,000 people arrived there, out of a total of 105,000 in Italy, according to the UNHCR. (AFP via Channels)