Shocking documentary reveals 1,400 migrant workers died in Qatar

CAIRO - 9 June 2019: A shocking TV documentary by German public broadcaster WDR revealed that at least 1,400 migrant workers from Nepal have died while helping to build football stadiums for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

According to Nepali government figures, construction site accidents and squalid living conditions in the tiny Gulf state are claiming around 110 lives every year.



A report by the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) in March 2014 estimated at least 4,000 more workers will die before the start of the World Cup in 2022.

The estimation of deaths in Qatar is conservative and based on the tragic statistics collected by two embassies only – Nepal and India – which account for around 50% of the total migrant workforce.

The figure of 4,000 possible deaths is based on mortality trend data from the Indian and Nepalese embassies over the three most recent years, taking into account some 500,000 extra workers (cited by official sources in Qatar) in the years leading up to the World Cup.

According to the report, on average about 20 Indian migrants died per month in 2013, peaking at 27 in the hottest month, August.

"191 Nepalese workers died in 2013 working in Qatar compared with 169 in 2012 based on Nepal Government figures. 400 Nepalese workers have died since 2010 when Qatar won the right to host the World Cup."

WDR’s investigative documentary, titled “Trapped in Qatar,” on Friday exposed the harrowing plight of workers forced to live in crowded camps without many basic human needs.

Despite Nepal’s efforts to discourage its citizens from heading to Qatar for work, many still leave in the hope of finding better-paid jobs.