A recent survey conducted by BRAC has found that 47.23 per cent of returnee migrants do not have any income source now. The returnees live their daily lives depending on family earnings, loans, and support from relatives, though a majority of them in working in agriculture as day labourers, or in small trading. Since Covid-19 triggered a global recession, large numbers of migrants were forced to return home with empty hands. The government in 2020 imposed a country-wide 66-day lockdown and provided incentive packages for different sectors, but migrants were no covered by those. In one year of the pandemic, the returnee migrants are in despair, debt, poverty and illness.
The survey was conducted in March-April to explore and analyse the socio-economic and psycho-social situation of returnee migrants after one year of their return home during the pandemic. In a similar survey conducted around the same time last year, BRAC found 87 per cent of 558 returnee migrants did not have income opportunities. The study found that 98.32 per cent of participants were under stress due to various issues such as unemployment, inadequate income, and inability to re-migrate. According to the report, 19 per cent of migrants said they returned home because of losing jobs, whereas 16 per cent were forced to return, 16 per cent returned for fear of Covid-19, 12 per cent returned permanently, two per cent due to illness, and 35 per cent came home on leave.
The study recommended that a sustainable reintegration project, including psycho-social support, should be launched for the returnees assessing their short and long-term vulnerabilities. It suggested making loans easily accessible to the returnees to engage in income-generating activities. The government should extend social protection coverage and safety net programmes to prevent them from falling into poverty. Besides, budgetary allocations for the expatriates’ welfare and overseas employment ministry should be increased to ensure the welfare of the migrants and their family members. Creating domestic employment opportunities for the returnees, especially in infrastructure development and other public provisions during and after the pandemic, would reduce the employment-related stress of the migrant workers.
