Trends in Human Trafficking – Issue no. 8, March 2020 – EEPA News Highlights

Dear readers,
The EEPA team is pleased to present the March 2020 issue of the newsletter on Trends in Human Trafficking between the Greater Horn of Africa and Europe. Please feel free to forward this information to others or invite them to subscribe via this link. If you have information to contribute, do not hesitate to contact us.

Tunisia makes the first step towards helping migrants in the context of COVID-19

The Tunisian government included migrants in a group of beneficiaries eligible  for financial and in-kind help, due to the spread of COVID-19 but a lot of work still remains to be done as the number of vulnerable people in the country is increasing, writes researcher Morgane Wirtz.

Closed borders and COVID-19, the difficulty for refugees

The world’s 70 million displaced people are one of the groups most vulnerable to COVID-19 while having the least tools to combat it. With COVID-19 spreading across the globe many countries have closed their borders, including for refugees. At present, 93% of the world population lives in countries with border restrictions for non-citizens and 39% live in countries completely closed to non-citizens. Countries that have traditionally welcomed many refugees are closing their borders and reception facilities. This has resulted in uncertain and dangerous situations for refugees. Meanwhile, organizations like the World Health Organizations (WHO) question the long-term merits of closing the border.