A record number of migrants have reached Italy by boat from North Africa in 2016 as pressure on Italy's shelter and asylum systems grows. In March, there was implementation of an agreement between the European Union and Turkey to address the issue of the flow of migrants moving to Greece. As of November 28, 171,299 boat migrants had reached Italy's shores, the Interior Ministry said, compared to the previous record of 170,100 for all of 2014.<br/><br/>Some 1,400 more migrants were rescued from rubber and wooden boats attempting to cross the central Mediterranean during Monday, Italy's coast guard said. In the past three years, Italy has recorded nearly half a million migrant arrivals. The influx has brought a record number of asylum requests this year in Italy where more than 176,000 asylum seekers stay in shelters. <br/>Most of the migrants who have come to Italy this year are Africans of various nationalities. Some 36,000 Nigerians have made the visit, along with 20,000 Eritreans and more than 12,000 from Guinea.