The World Food Programme (WFP) has launched an alarm on the situation of Eastern African refugees. The UN body says millions of people face serious famine and malnutrition due to the socioeconomic consequences of the coronavirus.
In the past two years, more migrants have traveled by boat to Yemen from the Horn of Africa than crossed the Mediterranean. Thousands of them are now trapped and facing multiple risks from the ongoing civil war, the threat of COVID-19, and abuse by human traffickers.
Lebanon's economic crisis is hitting foreign domestic workers particularly hard. Because many employers can no longer afford to pay their wages, many kick the women out onto the streets.
Restrictions aimed at stopping the spread of COVID-19 in East and Central Africa have left large numbers of migrants stranded. Human rights and refugee groups say the borders should be reopened for asylum seekers.
The conditions for migrants and refugees in Yemen are getting worse amid the global coronavirus pandemic. Not only are refugees and migrants more vulnerable to contracting the dangerous disease, but they are also increasingly facing stigmatization and prejudice.
Thousands of Ethiopian migrants have returned to their home country from Sudan, Djibouti, Saudi Arabia and other countries, according to IOM. Many returned because they lost their jobs abroad due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Lebanon is providing temporary shelter for a group of Ethiopian domestic workers abandoned by their employers. It will repatriate some of them, but COVID-19 quarantine measures mean the pressures of returning home are likely to be even greater.
Many Ethiopian immigrants who try to reach Saudi Arabia are not aware of the risks of the journey, a study by the UN migration agency IOM shows.
The UN refugee agency says COVID-19 and curfew conditions in Libya have reduced the possibilities for people to find ways to survive, prompting an increase in migrant departures from Libya towards Europe.
Police and immigration authorities have discovered 64 bodies and 14 survivors in the back of a truck in Mozambique. The people are believed to be migrants from Ethiopia hoping to reach South Africa.
As Egypt is suffering an economic downturn, migrants and refugees from sub-Saharan countries are experiencing growing abuse and violence. Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi is trying to intervene, making skin-deep reassurances.
Almost 1.5 million more euros will be added to a fund set up by Italy to help African nations, specifically for projects in Niger and Ethiopia.