While many countries in the World Health Organization European Region continue to struggle with the pandemic, asylum seekers, refugees, and migrants are playing an important role in efforts to fight Coronavirus, using their skills to support health systems and communities.

Saturday June 20th is World Refugee Day, leading WHO/Europe to join UN Secretary-General António Guterres in stating the need for refugees and migrants to be included in efforts and strategies in place to fight COVID-19.

The pandemic has impacted every continent, nation, and city in different ways. However, the effects on refugees and migrants has been unique; these effects split into three different categories.

The first way in which refugees and migrants have suffered COVID-19 has been in health. Many refugees live in camps that are generally filled with people and have poor sanitation facilities. In these conditions, there could be a lack of access to healthcare, putting them more at risk to Coronavirus.

Second, refugees have been impacted through their income. These groups tend to work in the informal sector and other professions that do not benefit from social protection. Losing their income could result in less payments being sent home.

Lastly, migrants and refugees have lacked protection during this time. The border restrictions in place around the world have made no exception or consideration for asylum seekers. Experts have confirmed many times that xenophobia, racism, and stigmatization have undoubtedly increased in the pandemic.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is now collaborating with the World Health Organization, per an announcement by WHO earlier this month. These organizations will seek to guarantee that preparedness, prevention, and public health responses to the pandemic will also reach refugees, internally displaced people, the stateless, and asylum seekers.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has exacted an enormous human cost and demanded that health systems across the Region mount effective and inclusive responses that leave no one behind.”

Dr. Hans Henri P. Kluge, WHO Regional Director for Europe

With the pandemic, refugees and migrants have proven one again that they are able to contribute to achieving universal health coverage. Whenever the world contributes to lifting social, economic, administrative and legal barriers they are presented with, refugees contribute to better health for all. During the pandemic, they have contributed in six different ways.

First of all, there has been a large number of refugees who have come forward with their medical qualifications, presenting their skills and acting as health-care workers.

Second, they’ve continually offered their help in areas consisting of essential services that cannot become interrupted. These include cleaning hospitals and collecting trash.

Refugees and migrants have also acted as cultural mediators and translators in the nationwide or continental-wide spread of healthcare messages, such as guidelines for infection-prevention. They’ve also shared numerous strategies and information on how to stay healthy while at home.

Continuing their contribution, asylum seekers have made a huge impact by producing face masks, protective gear, soap, and other essential cleaning products.

The fifth way refugees have shown amazing solidarity is in their creation of volunteer groups tasked with helping the most vulnerable members of communities. For example, these groups shop for groceries and pick up medication for the elderly, a group that is high risk.

Lastly, asylum seekers have shown their creativity by expressing themselves through art and music, promoting positive messages of hope, solidarity, and awareness during this time.

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