GENEVA (17 December 2020) – Migrants and their families, no matter what their migration status, must be included in the national COVID-19 response and recovery plans of all countries, human rights experts* said today in a statement marking International Migrants Day. Their full statement is as follows: “The pandemic has manifested globally the vital contributions migrant workers provide to local economies. Migrant workers form a crucial workforce in various sectors that are contributing to the delivery of essential services during the COVID-19 pandemic, including in domestic households. Among them, migrant health and care workers have been on the frontline. On this day where we pay tribute to all migrants, in a context of a continuing global health crisis that also has a severe impact on the governance of migratory movements, we must remind States to treat all migrants with dignity and provide them with equal access to services, benefits, information, and assistance. In national socio-economic response and recovery plans, States should consider migrant workers positive assets who bring labour, skills and diversity to host communities. Migrants and their families should be fully integrated in national plans to build back better and States should embrace a more inclusive and sustainable recovery from the pandemic, while implementing public health imperatives. With limited access to social protection and to decent work conditions, many migrants and their families are at serious risk of exploitation. Preventing exploitation is a core human rights obligation of all States. Migrant workers also contribute to economic resilience in host countries. States should invest in enhancing resilience for migrants and their families by providing access to basic services, including health services, to all migrants, particularly those in precarious socio-economic conditions. When vaccines for COVID-19 become available, migrants, regardless of their migration status, should be granted access to vaccines equal with provisions for others on a voluntary basis. States must lift, as soon as warranted, restrictive measures that have been imposed and had an impact on human mobility, migration and protection protocols in response to the pandemic.” ENDS