IOM to host virtual concert for migrants

International Organization for Migration (IOM) will host a virtual concert for migrants today to celebrate International Migrants Day (IMD). 

With over eight million Bangladeshi migrants working abroad, this virtual concert will enable them to connect and watch the concert from any part of the world, the UN migration agency said in a press release yesterday.

The "Concert for Migrants" will feature popular performers including Fakir Shahabuddin, Fahmida Nabi, SI Tutul, Sania Sultana Liza, Mizan Mahmud Razib, Xefer Rahman, Sahos Mostafiz and Nowshad Ferdous, a Bangladeshi singer living in South Korea. Palash Noor, lead vocalist of the band Warfaze, will host the concert.

Besides performing songs, the celebrities will speak on the importance of informed migration decisions and sustainable reintegration.

The theme for IMD 2020 is "reimagining human mobility", and performers will invite viewers to consider the impact that Covid-19 has had on people's way of life and how Bangladesh as a nation will move forward together.

The concert, organised in collaboration with Jamuna Television, will be streamed live on IOM Bangladesh's Facebook page (facebook.com/IOMBangladesh) and telecasted on Jamuna Television from 11pm Bangladesh time.

Giorgi Gigauri, IOM chief of mission in Bangladesh, said, "2020 has been a hard year, particularly on migrants and their communities. We take this opportunity to celebrate migrants' contributions and engage listeners in discussions on the importance of safe, regular, and orderly migration."