6/22/2021 South Asia’s migrants share problems, share solutions | Nepali Times Many lost their jobs and were stranded, and each sending country’s government had to embark on massive repatriation exercises (https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/one-wayticket-home-for-overseas-nepali-workers/) to bring back hundreds of thousands of workers amid travel restrictions, flight shutdowns and public health risks. Migrants who returned did so to rudimentary reintegration programs, battered economies and strained health systems. With the Gulf accounting for over 77% (Bangladesh) to over 96% (Pakistan) of annual outmigration in 2019, it has long been recognised that the reliance of many South Asian countries on a handful of destination countries in the GCC has made them vulnerable to macroeconomic and geopolitical shocks in these countries (see below). This was seen in the 2014 fall of oil prices, in the blockade of Qatar and recent geopolitical instability in the region. Other policies such as the Gulf’s nationalisation policies that prioritise recruitment of locals and has banned entry of foreigners in certain sectors also influence recruitment of workers, pressuring countries to think about diversification 58 Shares strategies. https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/south-asias-migrants-shared-problems-share-solutions/ 6/19