The cross-border movements of people have increased substantially during the recent decades, which is one of the prominent phenomena marked by the globalizing world. However, since the onset of the COVID-19 outbreak, active human mobility of all kinds has been dramatically curtailed by various lockdown measures to contain the pandemic, which has had a significant impact on social, economic, and cultural transformation in different contexts. From the perspective of migrant workers who have continued to make economic contributions to both origin and destination countries, their orderly, safe, and regular migration, and economic activities have been severely disturbed and threatened by the pandemic.
In this regard, the session will explore the recent trends in human mobility and the impacts of the pandemic on migration policies in the Asia-Pacific region. We will also discuss some challenges and recent developments in the pathways toward inclusive prosperity through a migration lens.