64 SL migrant workers have died from COVID-19, says Foreign Employment Bureau

Sixty-four Sri Lankan migrant workers have died from contracting COVID-19 so far, the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLFBE) said.

The latest victim was a Sri Lankan employed at a garment factory in Jordan, who died on Friday after contracting COVID-19.

SLFBE Spokesman Mangala Randeniya said over 350 Sri Lankan migrant workers employed at the same garment factory tested positive for the virus and are quarantined at a centre near the Dead Sea, located in the Jordan Rift Valley.

Over 2,600 migrant workers in total have so far tested positive for COVID-19.

All Sri Lankan missions overseas are focused on the wellbeing of these workers, Randeniya emphasised.

The program to provide compensation worth Rs. 500,000 on behalf of the migrant workers who died from contracting COVID-19 is currently underway, said Randeniya, adding that the compensation will be paid to their families.