But nearly 200 million migrant workers also travel across national borders, according to the International Labor Organization. Lacking basic rights and marooned in unfamiliar places, migrant workers are usually the first to be hit by an economic downturn. Now, as the coronavirus disease, COVID-19, spreads across the globe, migrant workers are not only victims but also vectors, bringing the epidemic to villages ill-equipped to deal with a health crisis. In Singapore, construction sites and dormitories for foreign workers have become hot spots of the coronavirus, with more than 400 people infected. Without adequate opportunities at home, migrants will still go to where the jobs are, even at the risk of disease.

Source: bd News24 April 11, 2020 03:22 UTC