CHAPTER


DOI :10.26650/B/SS49.2021.006.09   IUP :10.26650/B/SS49.2021.006.09    Full Text (PDF)

The Impacts of Pandemics on Migration

Erin M. SorrellElizabeth Ferris

Pandemic emergence through migration of tightly connected populations materialized in late 2019 with a novel coronavirus (COVID-19). Global spread was catalyzed by business, education, tourism, family and medical-related travel leading to swift international restrictions on movement and closed borders. Two-thirds of the worldwide migrant population journey for job opportunities and to access healthcare; many move internally in low-income countries. While migration has been a driver of global prosperity, it also places individuals in situations that impact their physical and mental wellbeing; many become vulnerable and marginalized in their communities. However, it is those same migrants that play a role in shaping the context and response to COVID-19. They have the dual burden of being more vulnerable to infection but also play a critical role in response working frontline jobs in public services and health. This chapter analyzes the relationship between pandemics and migration by first looking at migration as a driver of the pandemic and then at the effects of the pandemic on both migrants and the communities that host them. We conclude by analyzing the policy implications of the two-way relationship between migration and the pandemic.



References



SHARE




Istanbul University Press aims to contribute to the dissemination of ever growing scientific knowledge through publication of high quality scientific journals and books in accordance with the international publishing standards and ethics. Istanbul University Press follows an open access, non-commercial, scholarly publishing.