A refugee is helped ashore by Turkish medics after swimming from a boat, at a beach in Ayvalik district of Balikesir on January 5, 2016. [Photo/IC]

Increased policing on Turkey's shores and colder weather conditions have not deterred the migrants from the Middle East, Asia and Africa from embarking on the perilous journey in small, flimsy boats.

"Migrants and refugees continue to enter Greece at a rate of over 2,500 a day from Turkey, which is very close to the average through December," International Organization for Migration (IOM) spokesman Joel Millman told reporters in Geneva.

"So we see the migrant flows are continuing through the winter and obviously the fatalities are continuing as well."

The IOM said 3,771 migrants had died trying to cross the Mediterranean to reach Europe last year, up from 3,279 recorded deaths in 2014.

In a deal struck at the end of November, Turkey promised to help stem the flow of migrants to Europe in return for cash, visas and renewed talks on joining the European Union.

Turkey is host to 2.2 million Syrians and has spent around $8.5 billion on feeding and housing them since the start of the civil war nearly five years ago.

But it has faced criticism for lacking a longer term integration strategy to give Syrians a future there. Almost all of the refugees have no legal work status and the majority of children do not go to school.