Challenges of cross-border migrants amidst the Covid-19 outbreak: The case of migrant returnees in Dire Dawa, Ethiopia.

The unprecedented outbreak of covid-19 has affected the living conditions of irregular migrants across the globe. This article explores the challenges of cross-border migrants amid the covid-19 outbreak. It accentuates on investigating the life trajectories of irregular migrant returnees since the pandemic started. A mini survey case study was employed to collect data from selected returnees quarantined in Dire Dawa city, Ethiopia. Humanitarian workers and returnee host community members were also entailed for the data triangulation. Key informant interview and questionnaire were administered during the data collection. Partial random and convenience sampling techniques were employed to outreach the survey participants, while key informant interviewees were purposively selected. The study establishes that irregular migrants are a severely affected segment of society by the pandemic outbreak. It is unveiled that covid-19 has induced forced deportation of migrants that has risked them losing advantages they sought at the beginning of their migration. Most of the irregular migrants were excluded from stimulus packages meant to mitigate the economic crisis induced by the pandemic because they lack legal documents to claim the benefit. It is confirmed that migrants contracted covid-19 to a greater extent, forced into deportation at the time cases surged and forced to quarantine on arrival at the home country, thereby increasing their vulnerabilities. Measures taken to curb the virus has interrupted informal business activities overwhelmingly absorbing irregular migrant workers which mutated them back into impoverishment. The study demonstrates that covid-19 has ravaged the living conditions of irregular migrants and that there is need for a specific adaptive response that is considerate of migrant victims from the concerned stakeholders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]