Microsoft founder Bill Gates has urged Europe to stop demonstrating generosity towards asylum-seekers to avoid a migrant influx. In an interview with Germany’s Welt, he has advised European states to make it much more difficult for refuge-seekers from Africa and the Middle East to get to the continent.

During the interview, Gates warned of the grave consequences of allowing the mass influx of refugees into Europe, whose numbers would only continue to rise unless European nations change their policies.

“On the one hand you want to demonstrate generosity and take in refugees, but the more generous you are, the more word gets around about this, which in turn motivates more people to leave Africa,” Gates was quoted as saying by Welt.

According to Gates, foreign aid can prevent “enormous (migratory) pressure” looming over Europe due to the rapid growth of the African population. He said that European states should follow Germany’s example of providing 0.7 per cent of its gross domestic product to foreign aid payments.

Among its other projects, Gates’ charity foundation is known for donating money to deal with poverty, disease and lack of food in Africa.

The Gates interview comes amid the ongoing refugee crisis in Europe, which has triggered tensions within the European Union, as some of the bloc members who are meant to accommodate them refuse to fulfil their obligations by a 2015 plan. Three countries – Hungary, Poland and the Czech Republic – are facing legal action from the European Commission for failing to take their share of the quota.