Sick, stranded and broke: crisis hits Gulf's migrant workers

When all nine men in his dormitory caught coronavirus, 27-year-old Nurudhin was bused to a remote quarantine camp -- becoming one of many migrant workers Gulf states are struggling to accomodate adequately.

The oil-rich Gulf is reliant on the cheap labour of millions of foreigners -- mostly from India, Pakistan, Nepal and Sri Lanka -- many of whom live in squalid camps far from the region's showy skyscrapers and malls.

But the spread of coronavirus, alongside shrinking oil-driven economies, has left many workers sick and countless others unemployed, unpaid and at the mercy of unscrupulous employers.

"There is nothing in my room except a small bed. I have to share a bathroom with 20 to 30 people," said Nurudhin, a draftsman from India who was hospitalised before being taken to a remote isolation facility for blue-collar workers in the United Arab Emirates.

"There is no WiFi. Not even a television. But the situation in my room was even worse," he said of his crowded quarters in Abu Dhabi, which proved a fertile ground for the disease.

Despite strict curfews in force for weeks, the Gulf states with the biggest populations of foreign workers -- Saudi, UAE, Kuwait and Qatar -- are still reporting rising numbers of coronavirus cases.

Riyadh says foreigners account for 70 to 80 per cent of recently discovered cases.

To try to reduce transmission, Gulf authorities have moved workers from camps into temporary lodgings, while establishing mass screening centres and using drones in some neighbourhoods to warn people against congregating.

The UAE has been the most vocal among Gulf countries in demanding governments repatriate workers, many of whom have been laid off or gone unpaid as business halts and oil prices plummet.