The signs for Dahabshiil, the Somali money transfer company, are a familiar sight in some London’s streets. London’s community of Somalis is one of the largest in our diaspora and a regular ritual for its members is to go to these shops to send money to their families back home. This is a vital lifeline for those in a country that is still emerging from decades of conflict. But the coronavirus crisis is having an impact on these crucial payments. The pandemic, which has claimed more than 16,500 lives across the UK, has hit the Somali community hard in both economic and human terms. It is estimated that Somalis transfer more than $1bn every year – more than Somalia receives in aid. Somalis in London often work in vital, but low-paid jobs, which now leave them vulnerable on the front line of the crisis. They are part of London’s migrant workforce: the care workers, nurses, bus drivers and cleaners who work in the most precarious jobs, often on insecure contracts. Covid-19 has exposed the deep economic and social divides that exist in London.
SOURCE: BBC
