Exiled by climate, Bangladeshi migrants risk abuse in Gulf

Climate change is forcing ever more Bangladeshis to emigrate to the Gulf in search of a better life but the dream often turns into a reality of abuse and exploitation endured in slave-like conditions, according to a new study.

"Vulnerable people pushed to the brink due to climate shocks take a huge gamble to pay for migration, but often end up in a situation where they face abuse," said Ritu Bharadwaj, one of the report's authors.

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The study found that families in disaster-prone regions were now 1.6 times more likely to move within Bangladesh, and twice as likely to move abroad compared to households living in safer places. Up to 88% of households sent someone abroad this past decade, compared to just 9% from 2001-2010 and 4% in the 1990s.

Bangladesh is the world's seventh most vulnerable country to the impacts of climate change, and frequent disasters - from floods to cyclones - are taking a rising toll.

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