Image Source: Agencies

At least four migrants have died and 51 are missing after a migrant boat sank near the Tunisian island of Kerkenna, it said, adding that all the migrants on board were from sub-Saharan Africa.

Tunisia's coast guard recovered the bodies of 901 drowned migrants off its coast between January 1 and July 20 this year, the country's interior minister said in July, marking an unprecedented toll on the coast of the country.

The North African country is facing a record wave of migration and frequent disasters this year, with boatloads of migrants from sub-Saharan Africa heading for Italian shores.

Tunisia has replaced the Libyan region as the main departure point for people fleeing poverty and conflict in Africa and the Middle East, hoping for a better life in Europe.