Nepal, Jan. 20 -- The pandemic continues to disrupt our lives, more so for migrant workers and their families who took a direct hit as the world enforced stringent measures, including the closure of borders to contain the spread of the coronavirus. In March 2020, when the Oli administration enforced a nationwide lockdown with little planning or preparedness to deal with a public health emergency of this scale, migrant workers in the destination countries were left to fend for themselves, with little or no support from our diplomatic missions there.

Migrant workers have long been exploited and duped by brokers, manpower agencies and recruiters in the destination countries. They have often found themselves living and working in slavelike c...