Trinidad and Tobago — Monitoring Venezuelan Citizens Presence, Round 4 (December 2021)

Trinidad and Tobago, similar to many other countries, continues to wrestle with the worst impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, which became manifest on the island in March 2020. This virus, however, presented another layer of complexity to an already complicated context. More pointedly, since 2016, the country has been grappling with escalating inflows of Venezuelan migrants, given the deteriorating situation in Venezuela. Additionally, from as early as 2014, it encountered significant economic challenges that were precipitated by plummeting energy commodity prices and sector contraction. Consequently, heightened health and safety protocols to combat the spread of the virus, such as the closure of national borders and non-essential businesses; the introduction of virtual school and work; and the declaration of a State of Emergency in May 2021; inadvertently exacerbated economic issues and migrant vulnerabilities.

IOM’s DTM is a system to track and monitor displacement and population mobility. It is designed to capture, process and disseminate critical multi-layered information on the mobility, vulnerabilities, and needs of displaced and mobile populations, regularly and systematically. Hence, the DTM provides decision-makers and responders with insightful data to guide specific assistance to target populations.

A total of 1,376 Venezuelan migrants participated in DTM 2021, between October and November 2021. The areas with the highest number of respondents were Penal/Debe followed by Chaguanas and Tunapuna/Piarco, as shown in Map 1. Notwithstanding this, three respondents indicated that they did not know in which Regional Corporation or district they resided. This may be due to a high level of internal mobility, amongst the Venezuelan migrant population, and resultant frequent changes in residence.