Tackling coronavirus (COVID‑19)

Contributing to a global effort

What are the impacts and consequences of the coronavirus pandemic on our lives and our societies? And what are some of the solutions we can find to boost our healthcare systems, secure our businesses, maintain our jobs and education, and stabilise financial markets and economies? The OECD is compiling data, analysis and recommendations on a range of topics to address the emerging health, economic and societal crisis, facilitate co-ordination, and contribute to the necessary global action when confronting this enormous collective challenge.

Crisis puts migration at risk

Migration flows have increased over the past decade and some progress has been made to improve the integration of immigrants in the host countries. But some of these developments may be erased by the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic fallout. Governments need to secure the health and safety of all workers in essential activities and maintain spending on integration to help migrants continue to contribute to society and the economy, according to a new OECD report.

read the report

19/10/20

The OECD International Migration Outlook 2020 says that the COVID-19 crisis has had unprecedented consequences on migration flows. Before the pandemic, permanent migration flows to the OECD amounted to 5.3 million in 2019, with similar figures for 2017 and 2018. Although there were fewer refugee admissions, permanent labour migration rose by more than 13% in 2019 and temporary labour migration also rose, with more than 5 million entries recorded in the OECD.

Following the onset of the pandemic, almost all OECD countries restricted admission to foreigners.

As a result, issuances of new visas and permits in OECD countries plummeted by 46% in the first half of 2020, compared with the same period in 2019. This is the largest drop ever recorded. In the second quarter, the decline was 72%. Overall, 2020 is expected to be a historical low for international migration in the OECD area.

There are strong signs that mobility will not return to previous levels for some time. This is due to weaker labour demand, persistent severe travel restrictions as well as the widespread use of teleworking among high-skilled workers and remote learning by students.

“Migration will continue to play an important role for economic growth and innovation, as well as in responding to rapidly changing labour markets,” said OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría, launching the report with European Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson. “We need to avoid rolling back on integration and reaffirm that migration is an integral part of our lives.”

Migrant workers have been on the frontline of the crisis. They account for a large share of the OECD medical workforce, with one in four medical doctors in the OECD, and one in six nurses. In many OECD countries, more than a third of the workforce in other key sectors, such as transport, cleaning, food manufacturing and IT services, are immigrants.

Yet immigrants are facing a hard time in the labour market. Much of the past decade’s progress in employment rates among immigrants has been wiped out by the pandemic. In all countries for which data are available, immigrants’ unemployment increased more, compared to their native-born peers. The largest increases for immigrants were observed in Canada, Norway, Spain, Sweden and the United States. In Sweden, almost 60% of the initial increase in unemployment fell on immigrants. In the United States, unemployment of immigrants was lower than their native-born peers by almost one percentage point before the pandemic, it is now 2 percentage points higher.

Migrants are highly exposed to the health impacts of the pandemic. Working on the frontline during the pandemic but also vulnerabilities linked, for example, to housing conditions and poverty. Studies in a number of OECD countries found an infection risk that is at least twice as high as that of the native-born.

Going forward, getting migration and integration policies right will be essential if we are to achieve a strong and truly inclusive recovery.

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Key impacts

01/10/2020

Finding a vaccine and treatments

Efforts to find a vaccine and treatments for COVID-19 are advancing. But just how soon a truly safe and effective vaccine will be made available remains uncertain and international co-operation is essential to maximising the chances of success. Meanwhile, measures such as social distancing, masks, good hygiene, and “test, track and trace” strategies, can slow the virus’ spread.

> From Vaccines to a Global Cure
>  RESOURCES ON RESILIENT HEALTHCARE
16/09/2020

Stepping up actions for a green and inclusive recovery

Many countries are making “green” measures a central part of stimulus packages in the wake of COVID-19. But some countries are also implementing measures that risk having a negative environmental impact.

A healthy environment not only reduces the vulnerability of communities to pandemics, but has the potential to boost economic activity, create jobs and reduce inequalities.

> focus on a green recovery

Stepping up actions for a green and inclusive recovery

07/09/2020

Supporting people as the pandemic continues

The COVID-19 pandemic is taking a heavy toll, reshaping all parts of our lives. Children and young people, low-income households, women, low-skilled workers, part-time or temporary workers, and the self-employed are especially vulnerable. Many countries have been taking unprecedented measures to keep people in work, children learning and societies functioning.

> OECD Employment Outlook
> RESOURCES ON SOCIAL CHALLENGES

Supporting people as the pandemic continues

Key policy responses from the OECD

This new series brings together data, analysis and recommendations on a range of topics to address the emerging health, economic and societal crisis. These responses provide guidance on the short-term measures needed in affected sectors, with a specific focus on the vulnerable sectors of society and the economy. Beyond immediate responses, they also aim to provide analysis on the longer-term consequences and impacts of COVID-19, paving the way to recovery with co-ordinated policy responses across countries.

See all policy responses

COVID-19 and the aviation industry: Impact and policy responses

Air transport represents a small share of GDP but is closely linked to the activities of other sectors, especially airports and aircraft manufacturing – collectively considered here as the “aviation industry”. The aviation industry is...
15/10/2020
> read more

What is the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on immigrants and their children?

Both the experience from previous economic crises and first indications on labour market and social outcomes during the current pandemic suggest that the COVID-19 crisisis likely to have a disproportionate impact on immigrants and their...
19/10/2020
> read more

The role of transparency in avoiding a COVID-19 induced food crisis

Early in the COVID-19 outbreak, there were concerns that the health crisis would develop into a large-scale food crisis similar to the 2007-08 food price crisis, when panic buying and counterproductive policies exacerbated initial supply...
21/09/2020
> Read more

Migrant workers on the frontline of the COVID-19 crisis

In the health sector in OECD countries, migrants account for a large share of the OECD medical workforce: on average, 1 in 4 medical doctors and 1 in 6 nurses, and a large share of care workers and technical staff in many countries. Migrants also make up more than a third of the workforce in other key sectors, such as transport, cleaning, food manufacturing and IT services.

Yet migrants are experiencing higher levels of unemployment than native-born people, and endure high exposure to the health impacts of the pandemic related to housing conditions and poverty.

Governments need to secure the health and safety of all workers, including migrants, in essential activities, and maintain spending on the integration of migrants so that they continue to contribute to society and the economy, and not undo decades of progress.

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Statements

How to sustainably rebuild tourism in the wake of COVID-19

05/10/2020

“This crisis is an opportunity to rethink tourism development. The recovery must involve transforming the sector, re-inventing tourism destinations and businesses, re-building the tourism ecosystem, and innovating and investing in sustainable tourism.”

Zurab Pololikashvili, UNWTO Secretary-General, and Angel Gurría, OECD Secretary General
 Joint op-ed

Country Policy Tracker

  • What are countries doing to contain the spread of the coronavirus?

  • How are countries helping people, small businesses and the economy to weather the crisis and beyond?

  • This Country Policy Tracker helps you to navigate the global response.

Click to access the tracker
Photo credits ©: Top banner: Shutterstock: Sirisak_baokaew / Alessia Pierdomenico, AFP: Josh Edelson; Key impacts left to right: Shutterstock: Nate Hovee / mother_ana / Roman Zaiets.
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